Head Over Feet
by Liisa
Summary: Over ten years after Hogwarts, Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny find that they can't escape from all their problems just yet. Loosly based on Oscar Wilde's, An Ideal Husband. HG RHr
1. What More Can I Say?

_Disclaimer: This story is loosely based on the play/movie "An Ideal Husband" by Oscar Wilde and I do not claim credit for those particular plot parts. Also, certain conversations in the coming chapters are taken from that play and I will point those out as they come._

_A/N: Just a quick author's note, This story is meant to be cannon up to the sixth book which means everything that happened in the HBP happened in the past in this story. Some things might get confusing (like Draco and Harry being friends) but all will be explained, so don't worry!_

_Longer Summary: Over ten years after Hogwarts, Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny find that they can't escape from all their problems just yet. Harry seeks to escape the past, Ron seeks to forget his past, Hermione seeks to learn from the past and Ginny seeks to improve upon the past. The only catch is: they have to go through it together._

**Chapter 1 – What More Can I Say?**

"_He was a boy,_

_She was a girl,_

_Can I make it any more obvious?"_

_- "Sk8er Boy" by Avril Lavigne_

The house on Godric's Hollow, Number Three to be precise, was not, at first glance, anything unusual or spectacular. In fact it looked exceedingly the same as every other house on the street. Large in size, built with dark red bricks and off white shutters, it looked about as normal as any other house could be.

That is until you could spot an owl flying to and from the house sporadically throughout the day. It wasn't even the same owl all the time. More often than not it was a snowy white owl, quite unusual for anyone in England to see. Occasionally there were brown or black owls. About once a week there was a tiny owl that looked no larger than a robin. This owl tended to knock into several things before actually reaching the house.

But the strangest thing about the house was not the owls. It was in fact the small items you could see clutched in their talons.

Messenger owls?

The idea was preposterous! Of course most people who were new didn't even have to spy on the house to figure this out. Neighbors were happy to oblige and it didn't take more than 12 hours before a new neighbor got the whole story about Number Three and the scandalous Mr. Harry Potter who resided there.

"He works for the American Government," Mrs. Nobody insisted. "Those CIA people who come over here to spy on us."

"What about all those years after his parents died?" Mr. Someone countered. "Disappeared to South America, I've seen the treasures myself!"

"Don't even get me started on the parents," Miss Anyone cut in. "They were in too deep with the Russian Mafia. That's what got them killed that night."

"Well, what about the owls?" Mrs. New insisted. "What are they carrying?"

"Spy supplies? Messages? Who knows?" Mr. Someone answered. He leaned close to Mrs. New and whispered, "Careful around him. You never know when he's recording everything you say and do!"

The neighbors all turned quickly as the front door of Number Three opened quietly and a tall, handsome man stepped out. Most of them didn't seem fit to consider him a man. Why he couldn't be older than 30! And his hair! Sticking out in every which way. No discipline at all. The aura around him seemed to always silence the neighbors, especially when they caught a look at his eyes.

Mrs. Someone swore they were the greenest she had ever seen.

None of them spoke as he walked out a few steps, bending down to gather the morning paper that had been delivered to his front step. He didn't seem to notice their staring as he glanced at the front page quickly.

Then, suddenly he looked up and all the neighbors didn't dare move.

His face broke out into an unmistakable smile and he nodded briefly towards the group of them standing across the street.

"Good Morning," he waved cheerfully before stepping back into his house and shutting the door behind him.

There was silence for several more seconds before Mrs. New finally spoke her mind.

"Well, he seems pleasant enough! A right gentleman!"

The others all whirled on her.

"That's what he wants you to think!" Mr. Someone insisted.

"Just you wait," Mrs. Nobody said, her nose turned up distastefully. "Soon enough you'll see."

"Yes," Miss Anyone added. "His awful friends are sure to show up today. And just you wait till you see the first owl!"

They all dispersed then, leaving Mrs. New alone on the sidewalk looking thoughtfully at the quiet house across the street.

She had just about made up her mind to forget the crazy things she had heard when suddenly a curtain in the house was pulled aside and Mr. Potter stood there, drinking coffee and opening the window with one hand to let in the cool April breeze.

She froze and he spotted her, smiling and offering a wave.

Without a backward glance she hurried back up the street to her own Number Ten to bring the news to Mr. New about the eccentric new neighbor they had.

----

Harry Potter chuckled to himself as he saw the newest neighbor bolt down the street in fear.

"If only Voldemort had acted that scared of me," he said mockingly, shaking his head with disbelief that the rumors were still circulating about him. He had been back in his parent's old house for over a year now, but he still seemed as new as a foreigner.

"Harry? You awake, mate?" Ron Weasley's loud and very often obnoxious voice echoed through Harry's big, empty house. Rolling his eyes, Harry walked back to his family room, spotting Ron's head in the fire, giving him a smug look.

"I thought you said married people sleep in?" Harry said cheekily, leaning down to look into the fire.

"Yeah, well 'Mione has to go into the office today so I was elected to make her breakfast while she caught up on sleep. She was hungry for watermelon and peanut butter at five this morning and I'd like to see you sleep through her incessant hormones wining to me."

Harry chuckled. "Tell me again, Ron, how wonderful it is to be expecting a child?"

"Bloody bull sh-"

"Ronald Weasley!"

Chuckling even more as Harry heard Hermione's faint but shrill voice, he waited a moment as Ron turned away from him.

"Great Merlin, that women eats things that would make even me throw up," Ron made a face as he turned back to face Harry. "She's sending me out now to get fresh turnips and noodles."

"Why don't you send Misty?" Harry questioned, referring to Ron and Hermione's paid and vacation-taking house elf.

Ron grimaced. "Apparently I've been 'using; her too much lately," he rolled his eyes. "Honestly, I'm lucky to even get a chance to have her make a meal. I swear, the only reason Hermione let us get her was because she's letting us pay her."

"I'd offer to help, but I actually have plans today," Harry sighed dramatically.

"Oh bugger off, Harry. Are you going to be there tonight?"

"What? Do you think I'd miss it?"

"Well, you haven't exactly been reliable lately, what with all those secret girlfriends that Hermione insists you're hiding from us-"

Harry retaliated by throwing the rest of his coffee at the fire, dousing a bit of Ron's head. Ron laughed, pulling completely out and leaving the house silent again. Harry frowned at the fire, knowing Ron wasn't done.

Sure enough, a second later the emerald flames flashed up again and a small note floated down to the ashes.

Snatching it up, Harry went back into the kitchen to fix himself a real breakfast, wondering what possessed him to start drinking coffee when it left such an awful taste in his mouth.

He left the note crumpled on the counter as he started grabbing things to make an omelet.

_Harry –_

_Hermione threatens you under pain of death. Don't worry, I'll make sure she doesn't bring anyone for you._

_- Ron_

----

A hand came crashing down on the unsuspecting alarm clock, silencing its persistent "Time to wake up! Time to face a brand new day!" and making it sound more like "Shin fo make ut! Shin fo mace a gand ew bay!".

"Why do you even set that thing when you wake up so late?" An amused voice asked out of the darkness.

Ginny Weasley finally cracked her eyes open a bit, looking at her roommate, Riley, queen of the sarcastic comments and known all around for her dislike of serious people.

Riley was bustling about the room, packing for a short business trip, while Ginny was currently enjoying her vacation under the warm blanket.

"Leemelone…" Ginny mumbled, taking her hand off her clock and burying herself back into her covers. Unfortunately, without her hand muffling the clock, it began its annoying rant once more and Ginny could have sworn it was louder than before.

"Then I guess I won't tell you that you've already gotten an owl this morning."

Ginny bolted up, flinging the covers off and racing out of the room with far more speed than she knew she possessed. She skidded around the corner of the hallway and raced down the stairs, hardly daring to hope that she had finally received it.

She jumped the last four stairs and saw an owl sitting on the kitchen table. It clicked its beak impatiently and Ginny grabbed the letter off its leg, tearing it open and glancing at it. She knew she had been played before she read the first word. Riley's laugh echoed form upstairs.

"Argh!" Ginny threw the letter down, letting out a frustrated scream. "Not funny!"

Riley just laughed louder.

Collapsing onto on of the kitchen chairs, Ginny put her arms on the table and buried her face in them, feeling the sleepiness of the morning coming back. She should have known better anyway, it wasn't as if the Academy was going to be able to go over her application in just a week. Still, there was the hope that her acceptance (or other) letter would come sooner or later. The worst part about waiting was the length of it. She was rudely interrupted from falling asleep by the owl pecking at her head.

"Ow!" She sat up, glaring at it and rubbing her wounded head. "I'm not giving him a bloody answer right away," she said hatefully. "He should know that by now."

The owl seemed to give her a hurt look before taking off through the open window, being sure to clip her on the shoulder.

Riley clomped down the stairs loudly, singing "My Girl" with an overnight bag slung over her shoulder. Passing by Ginny's silent, fuming form, she didn't look at her merely said, "You might as well write him back, it's not like ignoring it really stops him." She giggled once more and opened the door, finally turning to look at Ginny. "Don't burn the place down while I'm gone," she said with a wink before she slammed the door behind her and Ginny heard a loud pop a few seconds later as she disapparated.

Ginny slammed her head down on her table a few times before picking up the letter again and reading it all the way through for the first time, thought after getting letters like this one constantly for the last few months, she could pretty much predict what it was going to say:

_Ginny-_

_If you're not busy this evening, please meet me in Langley Park near the benches. I have something very particular I want to ask you._

_-Edward_

She sighed. How many proposals had it been so far? Somewhere around 20 she would guess. She was surprised he hadn't gotten the hint by now, but coming from a traditional pureblood family, he was hell-bent on protocol…and getting what he wanted. However, she had thought those words "We should date other people" and "Please don't touch me" would have gotten the point across enough.

A loud tapping sounded from the window near her and looked up to see the same owl there, clutching a new note in its talons.

She put her head back down onto the table.

Apparently not.

----

As it turned out, Harry actually did have plans for the day, but they didn't start until noon which left him plenty of time to respond to the numerous owls he'd gotten throughout the week. It was quite annoying to still be getting job offer, especially when he just wrote the same reply on each one.

_I'm retired. Get over it._

It might have seemed odd that he was claiming to be retired at only 28, but he figured that his supply of gold in Gringotts more than made up for it.

Besides, he wasn't really retired at all. He just liked to make people think he was. After Hogwarts he had tried several different occupations, none of them really floating his fancy. The longest of which was a type of internship for the intelligence branch of the DMLE. He had thoroughly enjoyed the work, traveling frequently to America and other parts of the world. It had seemed well for a few years, but due to certain…personal affairs, Harry had chosen to leave, going back to the only home he ever really knew, Hogwarts.

He was now gainfully employed at Hogwarts for routine checks on the security measures there and made frequent visits to reinforce the wards. Some might have found it odd that there was still so much security around Hogwarts, especially with Voldemort's defeat over ten years ago, but Harry knew that it was better to be safe than sorry. There were still scattered groups of Death Eaters that the DMLE had been trying to round up for years, but no matter what anyone heard or claimed, Harry repeated his mantra; "He's dead. He's not coming back."

Apparently some simpletons refused to give up hope of their master returning and Harry was one of the only members of the magical community who had no fear of this. Others on the list included people like Arthur Weasley, head of the Muggle Relations Department, as well as Minerva McGonagall, Headmistress of Hogwarts, Ron and Hermione Weasley, Harry's two best friends from Hogwarts and a select few who Harry knew would trust his word on the final defeat of Voldemort.

Finishing off the last letter and sending it away with a highly disgruntled owl, Harry stretched, leaning back in his oversized armchair and closing his eyes for a moment. He ran through his schedule in his mind, realizing that he actually was going to have time to go to the Weasley's party tonight. He didn't know if that was a fortunate or unfortunate thing.

Luckily he didn't have much time to ponder the thought as a loud knock sounded at his front door and he stood up heavily, grabbing his wand on his desk and slipped it into his back pocket. He grabbed a roll of parchment that was sitting on the small desk near the front door and shoved it in his other pocket. Opening the door, he wasn't surprised to see a smug looking Draco Malfoy standing there, his blond hair falling loosely around his face, in a sort of disarray that Draco could still pull off as looking dignified. Harry had given up on his hair long ago and resigned himself to the fact that Draco was always going to look like a pompous rich kid.

"Give me a second," Harry said over his shoulder as he walked back into his study, Draco stepping into the house and glancing around with distaste as he always did. "I've got to send a note to Remus."

Harry didn't bother to wait for Draco to reply as he scribbled a quick note and sent it off with Hedwig. Sure enough, he came back out into the hall to see Draco looking doubtfully at the muggle TV that Harry had set up in the adjoining family room.

"Ogled enough?" Harry asked sarcastically, grabbing his robe and slipping it on.

Draco spared him an unnerving glance. "God, Potter, you live like a bloody muggle."

"I'll take that as a compliment," Harry smirked, motioning him out the door which Draco readily complied to. "You could have come by floo."

"Yes, I could have," Draco watched as Harry locked the house with a tap of his wand and they both started up the street. "But for some reason my magical signature was blocked from your fireplace."

Harry stifled a laugh. "Wonder who could have done that?"

Draco scowled over at him. "I'll get you back for that one, Potter, mark my words."

"Consider them marked," Harry shot back with a cheeky smile.

If one would have looked real hard they might have seen the slightest hint of a smile appear on Draco Malfoy's face.

But only if they looked real hard.

----

Remus managed not to kill the bloody bird as it flew onto his desk, dropping a small bit of parchment on his desk before flying right back out the window. He scowled, his headache pounding as he wondered, for the tenth time today, who he had agreed to this job.

He grabbed the note and flipped it open, recognizing Harry's handwriting and only figuring out just then that the bird had, in fact, been Hedwig, Harry's owl.

_Remus –_

_Draco's here. We'll be there in 10._

_- Harry_

Rubbing his tired eyes, Remus chucked the note into the nearest rubbish bin and proceeded to bang his head on his desk a few times.

"Careful, you don't have that many brain cells to loose," a cheery voice sounded over the muffled sounds of his head coming into contact with the plank of wood.

Leaving his head on the desk, Remus turned his face towards the fireplace and saw his wife's head floating in the fire, looking highly amused. All he managed was another scowl.

"That joke's old," he mumbled, turning his face to be squished by the desk in a futile attempt to stop breathing.

"So is the habit of banging your head on the desk," Tonks chided. There was silence for a moment and Remus dared hope that she had gone. But a moment later he was proven very wrong.

"Up and at 'em, Remus!" Tonks' voice was now much clearer and closer and Remus sighed into the top of the desk realizing she had just flooed there.

"Not now." His voice was muffled by the desk, but he didn't bother to move to make it any clearer. She wouldn't listen to him either way. She was in one of her _moods_….Remus was in one of his moods too, but it was on a different end of the spectrum.

"Honestly, Remus, it's only noon!" Tonks had opened the blinds in his office, letting in a stream of sunlight that Remus had forgotten was available to him. He was still getting used to this whole 'office' thing, especially considering the jobs in the past he had. "And it's a beautiful day!"

He groaned, finally rolling his head over so that he was looking over at her without lifting his head off the desk at all. "I hate this job."

"Nonsense!" Tonks said in surprise. "It's just your first week, give it more time." She walked over, grabbing a chair and sitting by his desk, lowering her head so they were nose to nose. "Kingsley sent me over, said you were getting 'frustrated'," she made the quote signs with her fingers jokingly.

Remus scoffed. "Understatement of the century, that." He sighed and finally lifted his head from the desk, Tonks following suit, her eyes never leaving his face. He blew out another long sigh, rubbing his face with his hand. "I feel like I'm being punished for sins from a past life."

Tonks let loose a string on laughter. "Oh honestly, Remus, it can't be that bad. Aren't Malfoy and Harry coming today?"

Remus nodded absentmindedly.

"And when's the last time you saw Harry?" she asked suspiciously, already knowing the answer.

Remus admitted she had a point. It had probably been at least two weeks since he had seen Harry, something Remus knew he'd never forgiven himself for. Since Harry's graduation and Remus' appointment in the DMLE their opportunities to spend time together had been few and far between. It especially was hard with his new promotion as head of WSM (Wards and Safety Measures). He now regretted his thoughts of wanting a real job and wished he was back at Hogwarts, teaching a class on Boggarts or starting a dueling club.

Tonks already had a triumphant smile on her face and she leaned forward, giving Remus a sweet kiss on the cheek before standing up and heading to the fireplace. "He's excited to see you too. And give it time, you'll be the best blasted werewolf this department has ever seen," she paused and he looked over to her as she winked. "Not to mention the only werewolf this department has ever seen." And with a flash of emerald flames she was gone, leaving Remus to smile at her kind gesture and prepare himself to deal with both Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy in his office at the same time.


	2. I Will Not Break

_A/N: Several lines from this chapter were taken from "An Ideal Husband" and for those of you who have seen the movie or read the play, it is starting to show it's smiliarities. Happy Reading!_

**Chapter 2 – I Will Not Break**

"_Because of you I find it hard to find it hard to trust,_

_Not only me but everyone around me._

_Because of you I am afraid"_

_- "Because of You" by Kelly Clarkson_

Harry shuffled his feet from side to side, trying not to look too obviously bored as he stood in the corner of the room, a bottle of firewhiskey in his hand and a million other things on his mind. The most prominent of which was everything he'd rather be doing than what he was actually doing. Even arriving late, he still was bored.

He didn't attend many parties for several reasons, all having to do with his "chosen one" status and the lack of tact that most of the Wizarding World felt they needed to have around him. Ron and Hermione threw a party a month, either for no good reason at all, or for them both to give reporters something to talk about. They had taken the brunt of the popularity from Harry, which he was grateful for, and both seemed comfortable with being in the limelight.

Ron was an _almost_ world famous keeper for the Chudley Cannons, bringing them out of their however-long hole of losing World Cups. Hermione, on the other side of the spectrum, was a highly sought after wizarding lawyer, one of the toughest positions to obtain outside of Minister of Magic itself, but neither Ron nor Harry were surprised when she was given her degree. After only 18 months of having the job, and being 6 months pregnant, Hermione was a spitfire on the courtroom floor.

He saw her across the room talking to the current Minister of Magic, Hestus Dolittle, an unsavory witch who was just as ambitious as old Cornelius Fudge and Rufus Scrimgeour, but luckily about things that mattered like training more Aurors and keeping Hogwarts safe. Hermione seemed to sense his stare and turned a bit to give him a cheerful smile before going back to the conversation, no doubt about her ridiculous Elf Rights campaign that had been going on since their fourth year at Hogwarts. He was surprised, what with her skills as a lawyer, she hadn't gotten them all freed yet. But Harry wasn't the only one around who knew that was never going to happen, even for Hermione Weasley.

"You are _very_ late," a cheeky voice drawled, coming up beside Harry. Ron's little sister and Harry's ex-girlfriend, Ginny Weasley smirked as Harry turned to look at her.

"Did you miss me?" he replied, allowing a small smile to grace his lips.

"Awfully," Ginny said dramatically, stringing her arm through his playfully and starting to lead him into the other room where the band was playing a lively dance number.

"Sorry to hear that." Harry heaved a sigh. "I should have stayed away longer, I like being missed."

In mock outrage, Ginny slapped him playfully on the arm and stopped walking. "How very selfish of you!"

Harry finally allowed himself to smile, but not enough to break the banter. "Miss Weasley, surely you know by now how very selfish I am."

She let out a dramatic sigh and continued walking with her arm around his. "You're always telling me about your bad, qualities, Mr. Potter."

"Oh, I haven't told you the half of them yet."

She stopped again and turned so that they were facing each other and she still wore her smirk. "Really? Are the others very bad?"

"Bloody awful. When I think of them at night I go to sleep at once!"

They both broke out in customary giggles, as was common after their routine banter. Harry leaned forward and gave her a quick hug which she returned gratefully.

"How are things in the private sector?" she began as they walked over to graze the refreshments table.

"Oh, right peachy," Harry said, nonchalantly, selecting a chocolate doughnut. "Working alongside Draco Malfoy was one of my grand ambitions in life."

"No doubt." He saw her give him a puzzled look out of the corner of her eye, but chose to ignore it.

Harry and Draco's friendship had always been somewhat of a puzzlement to Harry's friends. The year following Dumbledore's death, Draco had been as much of a wanted man as Snape had been. Harry, who had been the only witness of what had actually transpired, had hated them both with a vengeance that no one thought he would ever let go. That is until a battered and near dead Draco Malfoy staggered into Hogwarts one evening, remaining unconscious until the following afternoon. Harry had been the only one he was willing to talk to, but since Harry, Hermione and Ron hadn't enrolled in school that year, he was hard to track down. Luckily McGonagall had her ways and Harry turned up that evening, reluctant and suspicious, but after some coaxing, Harry and Draco talked for almost an hour in the hospital wing, Ron and Hermione standing outside the hospital wing doors, peaking in every five minutes to see the two young men still talking.

Harry had never told anyone the full details of the conversation, which explained their suspicion when he came out, informing them that Draco was pleading for sanctuary for him after his father had killed his mother on Voldemort's orders. Draco had explained to Harry, in reluctant terms, that despite the act he tried to put on when he was supposed to kill Dumbledore, Voldemort had threatened, blackmailed and even harmed Draco and his mother to make him carry out his orders. At the time, Draco had no way out of it and figured things would get better once his father was out of prison, but they only got worse. The murder of his mother seemed to shock the reality of war into Draco.

Even Harry was reluctant to trust Draco at first so they had simply kept him hidden, carrying out the promise that Dumbledore had made to Draco in his final moments. When the final showdown between the Order and the Death Eaters came, Draco voluntarily came out of hiding, swearing an unbreakable vow to Harry that he would fight for the side of the light and never betray him. Harry couldn't seem to argue with the terms, so he gave him a wand and let him fight. Draco killed three death eaters that night, one of them being his father. Thanks to the vow that still held, Draco would never and could never betray Harry Potter.

Of course, only Harry, Draco and Remus (who had preformed the spell) knew about the vow. They just let the others wonder.

"How's your work going?" Harry said in between mouthfuls of the doughnut.

She shrugged. "Not as exciting as I'd like it. You'd think with all the schooling I put up with, I could find something exciting in life, but working as an intern is just plain boring. I've got a few weeks off right now, but I'm hoping it becomes more of a permanent thing."

"Still waiting to hear from the DMLE?" he said apologetically.

Typical Ginny fashion caused her to frown. "You think this long means I didn't get in?"

"It's a competitive program, Gin, especially after the war. Everyone wants to save the world now and for some reason they got it in their heads that means being an Auror."

Her face grew stern as she looked across the room, not really focusing on anyone or anything. "I want it more than any of them."

Not really knowing what to say, Harry simply put a caring arm around her shoulders and said, "I know."

----

"Will you be staying in England long?"

The over-dressed American tossed back her long mane of curly brown hair, smiling at Hermione. "Most likely not, unfortunately." Hermione, however, found nothing unfortunate about it. "I have to be back in DC by a week from Sunday."

"Ah, Ron, there you are," Hermione was grateful at the distraction as she pulled a bewildered Ron over next to her to face the young woman. "This is Miss Lennon, of the American CIA. She's in town on business."

Hermione could see the doubt flash across Ron's face as he reached out and shook Lennon's hand, and she completely understood. Lennon looked like she would die if she broke a nail. The publicity of the American intelligence agency stylized it's agents as rough-n-ready males who took no BS from anyone and plainly dull women who did all the real work behind desks and on telephones, but the men decided to sleep with them anyway. Lennon looks more like an American supermodel.

"Dr. Weasley," she still loved hearing that title, and Hermione turned promptly to her addresser, becoming engaged in a conversation about the new legislation on werewolf rights and hoping desperately that Ron would be careful about what he talked about around the beautiful Miss Emily Lennon.

----

"You have a lovely house, Mr. Weasley. I'm sure your family is proud of all that you have accomplished."

Ron tried not to act uncomfortable about talking with this woman, but he remained polite. "We're very happy here," he said nonchalantly, taking a swig of butterbeer that he held in his hand.

He watched her eyes sweep the room a bit before settling back on him. "I was honored to be invited to one of your parties."

"You came with Miss Chang, did you not? She's a superb player. We've been trying to get her with the cannons for months now, but she sticks with the Tornados, no matter what I suppose."

"Yes, she's very dedicated to her team," she smiled. "Cho and I worked together in America for a few years and I'm staying with her for this particular trip."

They began a slow stroll about the room as they talked, though Ron had initiated the walk hoping to be able to shrug off the conversation to someone else. After almost ten years of getting used to celebrity limelight, Ron knew the etiquette of conversation, but on more than one occasion wished that he didn't. Opportunity knocked as he saw Harry a way off, saying one last thing to Ginny before moving back over to the refreshments table that they were now walking right by.

Grabbing Harry's arm and pulling him into view, Ron smiled and began, "Ah, Miss Lennon, allow me to introduce you to my best friend-"

"Good evening, Mr. Potter."

Ron knew at once that he had made a dreadful mistake. Harry was rarely ever caught off guard about something, and when he was, never let anyone know about it. But it seemed he could not hide the surprise from his face as he looked at Miss Lennon who smiled seductively at him, her attention now solely focused on Harry rather than Ron.

Harry had to be given props at how quickly he recovered and put on at least a decent looking face again, reaching out to shake her hand shortly, and then dropping it even quicker. "I did not think you'd remember me, Miss…Lennon, is it?"

"How could one forget you, Harry?"

Ron was just about to come up with a suitable excuse to leave, when Misty did it for him. She appeared at his shoulder.

"Master Weasley, there is being a problem with the wards outside," she looked quite frazzled, but Ron was relieved enough to get away that he didn't care what the problem was.

"Right," he turned to Harry and Lennon. "Excuse me if you will."

Lennon gave him a polite nod and Harry sent him a surprised and helpless silent beg for help. Not even daring to stay a moment longer, Ron ignored his best friend's plea and hurried away, hoping Harry would still talk to him after this.

---

"Harry, Harry…" it wasn't often that he hated the sound of his own name. He turned back toward all his troubles, still mentally cursing Ron and tried not to look as helpless as he felt. She smiled warmly at him, "Aren't you a little pleased to see me?"

"Probably even less than that," he admitted truthfully, taking a sip of his firewhiskey and wishing he had more. This was a perfect moment to be drunk.

"Should have expected that, I guess," he was surprised to see her fidget a bit before continuing. "I hear you're still a bachelor."

"I'm in no hurry," Harry replied nonchalantly. "Though, if the tabloids still keep up to date, and by the way Ron introduced you, I would assume you aren't so lucky."

She laughed heartily, a laugh Harry used to enjoy, but now sounded rather creepy. "Unfortunately my dear husband wasn't as lucky as I was in the combat area. He died on duty over five months ago."

"And yet you don't cry at night anymore," Harry said sarcastically, "Forgive me, Emily, but I'm not the only one who had doubts about that marriage, or it's ending."

"And you're not the first one to voice them either. However, I don't mind your opinion as much as others. In fact, yours is still the only one I think I truly believe in."

Harry frowned at that, trying to get around her manipulation. "What are you doing here, Emmy?"

She smiled widely. "I haven't been called that in years. It's a refreshing memory."

"No doubt," Harry scoffed, annoyed that he had already exchanged so many words with her after swearing to ignore her existence for all eternity. "I'll file it away with everything else I left in America."

"You're British accent was always so sexy," Emily said, stepping up to him and running a hand down his arm. He stood stiffly, ignoring how good she smelled.

"Look," he grabbed her arm, shoving her away gently, "as much as I love being felt up by you, I have to say the approach only works once."

She put on a fake pout. "Seen through my disguise?"

"Years ago."

Without another word he turned his back on her, heading towards the cloak room to gather his things and leave. He caught a flash of Ginny's bright red hair disappearing around the corner and sighed.

This party had gone on long enough.

----

Ron looked concerned as he saw Harry hurry out of the room, his countenance dark and uninviting. His eyes travels back over to the mysterious Miss Lennon to find her calmly holding a conversation with one of his teammates, Robby Stark, over near the staircase.

"What was that all about?" Hermione whispered in his ear, her voice worried as they both thought about their best friend.

"Seems they knew each other," Ron mumbled, looking away from Lennon. "Well it's one more secret he doesn't have to hide from us anymore."

He turned to see Hermione looking at him crossly.

"What?" Ron asked innocently.

"Get over there and find out what she did!" Hermione hissed angrily. "It's hard enough getting him to come to parties, but then you shove an unwanted acquaintance on him!"

"Hey, it's not my fault the man knows everybody. I was just being sociable."

----

"Mr. Weasley, how good of you to come back. I was hoping to get more acquainted with you."

Ron forced a smile and a slight nod of the head. "Forgive me for leaving to quickly. Damn rabbit set off an outer ward."

"Not at all." She took a sip of punch. "Would you mind giving me a short tour of your lovely home? I'd love to see more of its rooms."

A warning sign went off in Ron's head, but having no choice he led her across the foyer, into the closest unoccupied room which happened to be Hermione's library.

Closing the door behind them, Ron heard her sigh.

"Such a remarkable collection." He turned to see her gazing lovingly at the books that stacked along all four walls. "Though I would expect nothing less from Hermione Weasley."

"You know my wife well?"

"Know of her, is more like it. Surely you did not miss the fact that your Mr. Potter and I met on more than one occasion before?"

"I admit I did not." He cleared his throat uncomfortably. "I can't help but express curiosity as to the nature of your friendship."

"I think both he and I could hardly call it that, now," she laughed lightly. "But in his work in America he and I worked together quite often."

It seemed she did not want to say much more, for she quickly changed the subject.

"You have certainly come a long way from being in his shadow, though." She turned and smiled at him. "You're big break with that game in '98 was sheer magic, if you don't mind the pun."

Ron ordinarily didn't mind flattering words from fans. He had reveled in them the first few years and the rest had been tolerable and sometimes needed. But something about her words made his blood run cold.

He distinctly heard something 'click' in his mind.

"Lennon? Wouldn't happen to be related to a Michael Lennon, would you?"

She smiled charmingly up at him. "My late husband, of course."

Ron dropped his drink before he even had time to think about catching it.

----

"Your red hair seems to be giving you away tonight, Ginny," Hermione said wirily, coming up beside her sister-in-law and holding out a firewiskey for her. "Drink it," she instructed briskly. "For both of us."

Ginny didn't seem to mind the command, and knowing that Hermione was unable to drink because of her pregnancy popped the tab and let a third of the bottle drain quickly into her mouth.

Swallowing, she took a deep breath.

"Feel better?"

"Not really," Ginny admitted. "You saw him leave, didn't you?"

Hermione nodded darkly "No thanks to that Lennon, woman."

"That's her name, then?"

"Yes, one of Cho's friends, though there's no surprise there. Birds of a feather."

"He seemed angry at her."

"I've got Ron on it."

Ginny turned to Hermione. "Maybe I'll go try to catch Harry. See if I can help."

Hermione tapped the bottom of the firewiskey bottle with her fingers. "Drink up. By the way he looked, you're going to need more of that in you to have a decent conversation with him."

----

"Whatever you may be referring to, I have nothing to say on the matter."

Lennon seemed to be enjoying herself all to well. Heartless…

"You only have nothing to say on the matter because you believe there is no reason for you to say anything. But I will give you a reason, Ronald."

She pulled out a small folded piece of paper.

"Do you know what this is?"

"I have a guess, but I'm sure you would explain it to me anyway." He was trying not to sweat.

"It is a letter from you to my late husband when you were a standby keeper for the Chudley Cannons and he was the American investor in the team." He wasn't bothering with not sweating anymore, he was trying hard just to breathe. "It details in specifics a rather complicated plan, taking out John Daughterly, the then current keeper, the night before the playoffs for the world cup in the year 1998. Plans that you and he coordinated on specifically," she walked towards him slowly, "to place you in the right…" she paused, nose to nose with him, "…position."

Ron muttered off a set of swearwords Hermione would smack the back of his head for.

"tsk, tsk, Mr. Weasley, not at all civil conversation to this elegant and rich lifestyle you're now living in."

Ron gritted his teeth. "What do you want?"

She let out a giggle. "Well that's the brilliance of it all! Not very much at all!" She sat herself comfortable down on one of the oversized armchairs in the room and continued to look innocently at him. "I have invested a large sum of money into the coming game a week from today and would be delighted not to loose it all."

He gave her a pointed glare, knowing that wasn't the end of it. "Winning that game will be no problem for us."

"Oh of course not!" she gave a giggle, apparently highly amused with herself. "Everyone knows that the odds are highly in the Cannon's favor. But you see my dear boy," she stood and walked right up to him again, her voice dropping to a menacing whisper, "thanks to the uninsightful skills of my now dead husband, all that money has been placed on the Wimbourne Wasps winning. So if you know what's best for you and your family, I suggest you get rid of your exceeding talent by next Saturday, or you'll find that this letter makes its way into more…resourceful hands."

She turned abruptly, her heels clicking as she walked towards the door. "I expect an owl no later than Monday night, Mr. Weasley." As she opened the door, she turned back to him and gave a winning smile. "You know where to find me."

And without another word, she was gone, leaving Ron alone in the room to lean heavily on the desk behind him, wishing for once that he had ignored protocol and blown the woman off earlier…

Or better yet, have skipped Chang's name on the invitation list in the first place.


	3. Don't Be Concerned

_A/N: I'm hoping to keep this trend up of updating every five days (to give you guys some kind of schedule). Also, most of the chapters from now on will begin with some type of flashback to the ten years that you guys don't know much about yet and that'll be my way of explaining most of the questions I'm getting._

_Also, remember that Harry, Ron and Hermione are 28 and Ginny is 27. You can do the math for anyone else, but that's the time period I'm working with._

_Also, again, someone asked about my chapter titles. They're basically just kines from the same song that I quote at the beginning of that chapter and I pick the songs out for all their lyrics, so probably to fully understand, You'd have to know the song. If not, just pretend I'm doing something really creative and literary._

_And a short disclaimer: this chapter takes a lot out of the play "An Ideal husband", more so than any other chapter will. These particular scenes, though, I just couldn't pass up._

_-----_

**Chapter 3 – Don't Be Concerned**

"_But what if the pages stay pressed,  
the chapters unfinished,  
the stories too dull to unfold?"_

_- _"This Ruined Puzzle" by Dashboard Confessionals

"_She WHAT?" Harry's voice rose higher, startling the new intern who stood in front of him, cowering back in fright._

_Remus poked his head out of Harry's office to see Harry grabbed the file out of her hands and she practically ran away. It had been almost three weeks since Harry had returned from his work in DC, but he still hadn't broken down once about Emily. Remus was afraid that if he didn't soon, the pent up anger and grief would manifest itself in a less acceptable situation. _

_Almost everyone in the room was throwing questioning glances towards Harry as he flipped through the papers, becoming more and more frustrated with each one. Finally slamming it shut he stormed over to where Remus was and slammed the door._

"_Twenty men, Remus! Twenty of my men were sent out today because of an anonymous tip about Bellatrix possibly being near Hogsmeade, and do you want to know how many came back? Two! TWO BLOODY AGENTS CAME BACK! And that's not all. Bellatrix was there with ten other Death Eaters and they all got away, every single one of them?"_

_Remus was astonished in not only the facts, but the idea that someone actually approved and executed the plan. "Who in the world-"_

"_I'd be better off going back to bloody America and taking my chances with her there! She can't treat my men like this!" Harry was pacing around his office, fuming, and kept running a hand through his untidy hair and Remus was now getting more of an idea about what happened. "How dare she even think she can intimidate me like this?"_

_Remus pinched the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger, sighing. "Harry, is this about Emily?"_

"_She signed it Remus!" Harry all but cried, flashing the paper up in his face. "She signed it! She sent eighteen of our agents to their death! How can people not see this woman is pure evil?"_

"_Probably the way you didn't see it," Remus snapped back, getting fed up with Harry's unproductive ranting. The comment shut Harry up immediately and his eyes flashed up to Remus._

"_Get out," Harry said after a moment of silence._

_Remus didn't show any regret or apology in his eyes, merely held Harry's fuming gaze for a few more seconds before wrenching the door open and slamming it shut behind him. He stood on the other side, breathing heavily and full of so much anger towards Emily and so much bitterness towards Harry at that moment._

_A few seconds later, though, the bitterness faded completely as he stood very still and listened to the soft sobs that echoed through the closed door, sobs that Remus hated hearing more than anything in the world…_

_----_

"Don't get all fatherly on me now, Remus. Today is not the day."

Shutting the door behind him, Remus raised a curious eyebrow at Harry's already retreating back.

"Good morning to you too, Harry."

Harry didn't pause as he continued to walk down the hall, turning into his office and rummaging around doing who knows what.

"It won't work," Remus leaned against the office doorway, "I don't even have to be in the office today."

Harry hissed out a sigh without looking up. "I can't really chat right now." He seemed to be darting around doing busywork, moving files, underlining dates and correcting spells.

"Ginny flooed me this morning."

"Muhum…" he bent over his desk, studying a report closely, his forehead furrowed.

"She was worried about you after last night." He paused, gauging a reaction. "Said you left in a hurry and she couldn't find you after."

"Is that a fact?" he mumbled, still not looking up and filing a stack of parchment into the shelves behind his desk.

Having enough, Remus sighed heavily, taking two steps up to the desk and sweeping away the rest of the files in front of Harry. Harry stood shocked for a moment, his eyes darting up to Remus in astonishment.

"You really need to take a break, Harry. Running yourself ragged isn't going to punish Emily, only you."

Harry's face hardened a bit. "You have no right to talk, Remus."

"Look, Harry…" Remus hesitated, trying to find the right words. "She's got too much control over your life. Find someone else. Move on, for Merlin's sake…"

Harry's eyes flashed dangerously. "Don't you think I want to? Don't you think I try every minute of my life to forget what she did to me?" He stuffed a parchment a little too harshly into an envelope and sealed it. "Don't you realize that every time I get close to another woman all I can see is her smile and hear her words as she stuck that knife in my stomach?" His voice lowered. "Don't you realize that I'm not in any hurry to get hurt again?"

Not allowing another word, Harry swept out of the room, leaving a bewildered and silent Remus behind, wondering desperately how he could help his young charge.

----

"Mr. Weasley! Mr. Weasley!"

"How do you think the Cannon's will do this week?"

"Are you planning any new plays?"

"Do you have your starting players chosen?"

"The odds are highly in your favor, but are you at all worried?"

"What will the Cannon's do if they make it to the World Cup again?"

"How much have you been practicing this week?"

"Are there any after parties planned?"

"Will Stempski or Travis be starting as Seeker?"

Ron answered the questions in quite a monotone voice, not really paying attention to much as flash after flash lit up his face and blinded his eyes. Press Conferences became the bane of his existence right after becoming the Player Captain of the Cannons five years ago.

Mostly he was thinking about his conversation with Lennon last night and the fact that he still had no idea how to deal with it yet.

As the conference broke up, Ron stood to leave, reports filing out of the pitch, talking with one another and munching on the last of the snacks that had been laid out for them.

"Ron. Ron!"

He didn't stop walking, but slowed as Colin Creevey came up beside him. Having matured much since Hogwarts, Colin was a reporter and part time photographer for the Daily Prophet and had gotten on quite good terms with Ron as they shared a mutually beneficial relationship between writing favorable stories and giving first tips.

"Had a visitor this morning," Colin began without preamble, chewing up a half a chocolate frog. "Lennon something-or-other. American chick. Said I should talk to you about Saturday's game. Said you had big new for me."

Ron stopped, his face betraying nothing as he turned to face Collin.

"Nothing yet, Creevey. I'll let you know if something comes up."

Turning away quickly, Ron all but ran into the locker room, heart pounding and head spinning as he thought feverishly for an answer to his questions.

----

Ginny examined a third hat, only to put it right back again and move onto the next aisle of the store, Hermione on the other side, keeping up with her as she examined necklaces

"Well I could see by the glare in his eyes that he was about to do it again," Ginny was saying, trying on another hat and examining herself in the mirror.

"Poor Mr. Edward," Hermione grinned, glancing over at Ginny. "It sounds quite serious."

"Oh it is." Ginny picked up another hat, denim with a red flower on the side. "He proposed to me in broad daylight right by those make-out benches from graduate school."

Hermione smiled knowingly and grabbed a hat for herself, trying it on.

"Honestly," Ginny pivoted a bit to get different views of the hat, "the things that go on around those benches are quite appalling. The Ministry should interfere."

Matching a necklace to her hat, Hermione turned towards her own mirror. "I know it may not suit a modern girl like you, Ginny, but there is, of course, one extremely effective way to put a stop to his proposals."

"And that would be?" Ginny leaned over the divider, looking curiously at Hermione.

"To accept one of them!"

"Oh, no!" Ginny broke out into giggles which set Hermione off and they eventually had to leave the store for upsetting the public peace.

----

"Well you're the man of mystery today," Ron commented as Harry threw another quaffle that Ron caught easily, defending the hoops behind him. "Remus said he couldn't get two words out of you this morning, and you're certainly not giving me anything to go with."

"I don't want to talk about it," Harry said sharply, throwing quite a bit harder, but still having his shot easily blocked by Ron.

"You know, I think I hear that line too much out of you, especially for being your best friend."

"Well I'm sure you couldn't guess most of the story just by watching us last night."

"So," Ron caught another one, "you had a bit of a history with Lennon. Sexual tension was there," he caught another one, "she obviously hasn't forgotten you," another one, "and for some reason you seem to remember her all too well."

Harry threw a hard one that hurt Ron's hand as he caught it.

"American too. Dead sexy accent."

For some reason this comment drew a truly piercing glare from Harry.

Ron just laughed. "You always seem to attract the beautiful ones, don't you?"

Harry let the previous comment slide off easy enough and managed to crack a smile. "All I do is flash the scar and they come runnin."

"You know, I almost wish I was you sometimes," Ron said reminiscently.

"You know, Ron, I almost wish you were, too. Except that you'd probably make something useful out of my life, but after Hogwarts, I happen to like doing nothing."

"You could always get married." Ron suggested.

"Yeah, it's the always bit that's been worrying me."

They landed on the ground, breathing heavily from the activity and heading toward the locker rooms, the field deserted except for them

"I take it you've been talking with Remus?" Harry said dryly as they entered the room, storing their equipment and putting on dry shirts.

"What tipped you off?" Ron closed his locker loudly, pulling a shirt over his head.

"Why is it that all of London seems fit to get me married?"

Ron pulled a face. "How many more times do you want to be chosen as Witch Weekly's Hottest Bachelor of the Month? You're racking up in the high twenties at my last count."

"All you need is love, right?"

"Well, love, a good woman and a best friend," Ron said, raising an eyebrow.

"And you neglected to mention that you took the last good woman I know. Took her right out from under my nose," Harry said in mock accusation, "if I remember correctly."

"Which you don't," Ron said superiorly as they both walked back into the sunlight toward the apparition point. "And what about that saying with the sea and there being plenty of fish in it?"

"Oh yes, but I couldn't possibly marry a fish."

They both broke out into laughter, overriding each others nagging thoughts about a certain red-haired witch and why exactly she had not been brought up in the conversation.

----

Being married was a great change to Remus Lupin's life.

"You know, if I knew how to cook better, this could happen more often," Tonks said sullenly as they set out dinner for the night: takeout from Warlock's Wonderhouse.

Remus chuckled, grabbing two cups and a pitcher of pumpkin juice out of the fridge. "Well if I could get a better job we could have a house elf to do all this blasted work, but we can't." Setting down the glasses, Remus smirked up at her. "Relax, Dora. I wouldn't love you any more if you could cook an eight-course meal."

Tonks managed a slight smile and they sat down at the table, starting to load their plates. "So I guess I can cancel the cooking classes I signed up for next week."

"Definitely."

There was a pause for a moment as they started eating.

"So did you get a chance to talk to Harry today?" Tonks asked.

Remus grimaced, but not because of the food. "Barely. He doesn't seem to want to talk about it."

"You think it's more than Emily? Is there something else bothering him?"

"I doubt it," Remus took a sip of juice. "Ron was reluctant to talk about it either. But I asked him to try to cheer Harry up so they went to the Quidditch pitch this afternoon."

"Well that should be good," Tonks said slowly, making Remus look up at her questioningly.

"What?" he said innocently. "What is that look for?"

"Shouldn't you have sent someone else? Someone with longer red hair, perhaps?" Tonks grinned evily.

"First off, I have no intention of playing matchmaker with Harry," Remus said dryly. "He's had quite enough problems in his love life and I'm not one to be giving anyone advice about it."

"Oh, I beg to differ…"

"Secondly," Remus interrupted, rolling his eyes, "yes, Ginny may have been the one who was worried about Harry last night, but he's not even going to think of her until Emily leaves him the hell alone."

"And when's that gonna happen?"

Remus pictured the night Harry finally broke down, three weeks after coming home from his assignment in DC.

He closed his eyes, still able to see Harry's tears and hear his soft sobs.

"Remus?" Tonks repeated. "When is she finally going to leave him alone?"

Harry's tear streaked face mixed with James' dead face, both of them filled with anger hurt and betrayal.

"Soon, I hope…for his sake."

----

Harry strolled dutifully around the nightclub, firewhiskey in one hand already half gone. The loud, rancorous music began to seem deafening, but at least Harry knew he had too much to drink.

Finally making it to the bar and finding an empty stool, he set the bottle down, vowing not to pick it up again, letting the pounding in his head become a constant reminder of that vow. At least it was washing away his conversations with Remus and Ron earlier today. And the fact that his ex-girlfriend was in the same country as him again.

He didn't go out at night, much, but when he did it was always to overcrowded, loud and popular places, making it easier for him to go unnoticed by people. Getting slightly drunk also had its perks, as no one expected the famous Harry Potter to be so lax in his drinking.

He never took it too far, though. He didn't think he could handle another night like Ron's bachelor party where he had forgotten over half the night and woken up at noon the next day, pleading with someone to cut his head off to stop the pain in it. He smiled at the thought. Hermione hadn't been happy with either of them, but Harry especially. He had recovered faster than Ron and was therefore submitted to Hermione's lecture about weddings and grooms and how it was good if the two happened at the same time. Harry had been throwing doubtful looks at Ron's still collapsed form and knew that the right thing to do for Ron was to never let him wake up and feel the pain in his head. But, there was a marriage to be held the next day, and if the press ever found out they'd have a field day. Luckily, Ron was sobered up by the time Hermione was walking down the aisle and everything more or less came off as planned.

The music stopped for half a minute as the band chose its next number. The mixed voices around him grew louder as people tried to talk to one another now without competing with the music, just everyone around them. One particular voice caught his attention and he turned to the source of it.

Sure enough, Ginny was over in one of the nearby booths looking very angry at the man sitting across from her. Harry squinted a bit at the man and recognized him as Ginny's current on-again/off-again boyfriend, Edward.

He was catching just snippets of their conversation, but could tell that Ginny was rather angry (and rather intoxicated) and Edward looked very cross himself.

Deciding to intervene (for Ron would no doubt hear about this and blame Harry if anything happened), Harry left his drink sitting on the bar and walked over to their booth right as the music started up again.

Ginny turned at once as he walked up, her eyes softening just a bit as she saw who it was.

"Fancy meeting you here," he said nonchalantly, grateful they were on the opposite side of the room as the band and could hold a somewhat normal conversation.

"I tried to find you last night after the party…no one knew where you had gone." Her voice, though slurred a bit from the drink, was hesitant.

Edward seemed to catch Ginny's angered mood at that point and glared hatefully up at Harry, grabbing his robe as he started to get up. "We'll talk about this later, Ginevra."

Though Harry looked over at Edward, he could see Ginny's typical scowl at being addressed by her full name and they both watched in silence as Edward quickly left the nightclub, flinging his velvet cape on his shoulders as he walked out.

"Bloody git," Ginny hissed as Harry took the seat across from her that had just been vacated, keeping his face neutral. "He can shove his pureblood heritage up his-"

Hearing enough, Harry reached forward, grabbing Ginny's bottle out of her hand and taking it away. It stopped her ranting, but she didn't move to take it back, merely sunk down into the seat, sighing.

"Half a pint of dragonale, Gin? Were you trying to make your head fall off?" Harry looked distastefully at the drink. Dragonale was quite a bit more potent then firewhiskey. Having a few sips would put anyone a little loopy. He had never seen Ginny drink it before.

"It seemed better than the alternative," Ginny said, holding a hand to her head. "You realize this makes exactly 31 times now?"

Harry was at a loss so he kept quiet.

"31 times he's tried the same old line, the same old ring and the same old reasons. 'We're purebloods, I'm handsome, I think you're hot, No one says no to me'." She hissed out a sigh in between her teeth and Harry deposited the drink in a rubbish bin that was floating by. He recalled Ron mentioning Edward a few times and how he was being a bit of a prick to Ginny with his proposals. Harry had thought it stalking, but it seemed Ginny didn't want to stop dating him; she just didn't want to marry him. Women were odd that way, he decided.

"He doesn't seem to get the idea that I don't love him, and he's never said those words to me either."

Harry's forehead furrowed. "No offense, but I'm very glad I'm not pureblood."

Ginny didn't reply, in fact she didn't even look at him. She just stood up, beginning to leave the table, on her way, it seemed, to the bar to get another drink. Harry hastily stood up, grabbing her arm gently to stop her.

"You should get home, Ginny. Come on, I'll help you."

He tugged on her arm a bit to the door, but she shook him off with more force than he thought possible for one so small and skinny as she was.

"Blast, Harry, let me go," she demanded, her voice harsh, but soft. "Don't start being the overprotective brother right now…" she paused. "That's not what I need."

He frowned as she finally looked over at him. "What do you need, Gin?"

Her face darkened. "Obviously nothing you can give me."

She jerked away again, harder, breaking his grip and walking over to the bar. Harry didn't follow her, but sat back down in the booth, watching her carefully as she ordered another half a pint of dragonale.

He watched as she dutifully downed it all within the next half hour.

He watched as she looked at the couples around her, a single tear falling down her cheek.

A quarter of an hour after that, he led her carefully out of the club, picking her up once they were out of the building and apparating her to her house.

Carefully laying her in her bed and removing her high heel shoes, Harry pulled the covers over her gently, quietly going back down the stairs, locking her door with a tap of his wand and apparating home.

----

"You've been awfully quiet today, Ron."

He glanced over towards Hermione who was propped up on a pillow in their bed, a book in her lap but her gaze fixed on him sympathetically. He didn't reply but finished pulling on his shirt and proceeded to his chair by the bed, grabbing a pile of notes from yesterday's practice and glancing over them mechanically.

"Were you able to talk with Harry? Is he okay?"

"Yes, he's going to be alright, I think," Ron looked up at his wife, offering her a comforting smile. "We had a good time today." He stood up, leaning across the bed to give Hermione a warm kiss. "Don't worry love, I'm alright." He sat next to her in the bed, his hand reaching for her oversized stomach, rubbing it gently. "I'm just worried about the game, that's all."

Hermione smiled at him ruefully. "I don't know much about Quidditch, Ronald, but being married to you for three years has increased my skill and even I know that the Cannons are going to win."

Ron hesitated, but tried not to show the conflicting emotions on his face. "I'm not so sure anymore. The Wasps are brining in that new Seeker, Adrian, and they have made it to the semifinals. I mean, they beat the Tornados a few weeks ago."

"So? The Cannons beat the Tornados too."

"Barely," Ron admitted. "If it wasn't for our chasers, Chang catching that snitch would have been the end of it."

"The chasers _and_ the keeper," Hermione reminded him, giving him a kiss this time, one that lasted much longer.

They were silent when the kiss broke and Ron studied her face carefully.

"I love you," he whispered, knowing he needed to say it, and hear it, now more than ever.

"I love you, too."

Such small and simple words seemed to comfort Ron more than anything else and he relaxed enough to turn off the lights with a flick of his wand and fall into a comfortable and warm sleep, his arm wrapped tightly around Hermione, not daring to let go.

---

_A/N: Next time it'll be almost a full chapter on Harry and Ginny explaining a few things, but not all, about their relationship. But all will be explained eventually, no worries ;)_


	4. You Never Hear Me

_A/N: This flashback is really long, and they won't normally be like this, but this was a particularly important scene and I wanted to put it all in. Hope it doesn't confuse you much_

**Chapter 4 – You Never Hear Me**

"_We're much too young_

_And life's so big_

_We don't know yet what the future brings."_

_-"Young and Proud" by Ace of Base_

_----_

_Ragged and worn down, the fresh pajamas and clean sheets felt like heaven to Harry and he wondered why he hadn't fallen asleep yet. _

_The Burrow was silent and still as ever, faint sounds of crickets and wind came in through the slightly open window and a cool April breeze floated throughout Ron's room._

_He turned again, relishing in the softness of a real bed, something he hadn't been able to enjoy for about nine months now. Whatever he had been expecting this adventure to be like, it hadn't prepared him for the real thing._

_August first, a day after Harry had come of age, he had promptly left Number 4 Privet Drive without saying a word to his relatives or even looking in their direction. He had met up with Ron and Hermione at the Leaky Cauldron in Loudon and there they had started their journey. _

_Harry did admit that searching for the Horcruxes was proving to take a lot longer than he had originally thought. But it wouldn't be long now. They were on the verge of finding Hufflepuff's cup, and after that, only one was left until Harry finally had to fulfill the prophecy. _

_Both he and Hermione had been reluctant to stop the quest, but after being away for so long, all three of them agreed that a trip to the Burrow would not only be a nice rest, but a chance to check up on friends and family with whom they had had little contact with over the last several months. The only real contact was through monthly owls, short and to the point. They had been able to talk a while with McGonagall back in December when Harry had gone to Hogwarts to talk with Draco Malfoy, but other than that, they had taken the burden upon themselves._

_Mrs. Weasley had been overjoyed to see them, insisting they stay a few nights and relax under the protection of the Burrow's wards. None of them had complained and after a full and wonderfully delicious meal, the three of them had collapsed into bed: Ron and Harry going into Ron's old room and Hermione sleeping in Ginny's room._

_Having enough of the tossing and turning, Harry got out of bed quickly, tiptoeing to the door and carefully creeping down the rickety stairs towards the kitchen. _

_It was still very silent on the bottom floor of the house and Harry moved quietly and cautiously as he went for a glass of water, feeling the familiar weight of his wand in the back pocket of his pajamas. Being on the move for nine months had trained the trio to act more like Mad-Eye Moody than ever, though that paranoia was responsible for saving their lives on more than one occasion._

_But no experience could have prepared Harry for turning back around and seeing Ginny Weasley standing there, her hair in two slightly messy braids, dressed in a tank top and old flannel pants that probably used to belong to her brothers. _

_The two froze awkwardly, neither sure what to say or do. Harry's glass shook a bit in his hand._

"_I…I thought you would be at school," he whispered lamely, not wanting to talk too loud._

_Ginny bit her bottom lip and glanced away from Harry looking a little angry. "McGonagall sent us home at the beginning of March after Death Eaters attacked Hogsmeade and a few managed to get on the grounds of Hogwarts." She looked back at Harry, her face full of frustration and a slight amount of hurt. "I guess you didn't get the news."_

_Harry opened and shut his mouth a few times, every reply dying before he had a chance to make a fool of himself. He truly hadn't expected her to be there and didn't remember Mrs. Weasley mentioning that Ginny was at home. He had just assumed that all was still well at Hogwarts. Obviously, now that he thought of it, that was a hasty assumption._

_When he didn't reply, Ginny calmly walked over to the fridge, retrieving an apple from inside and grabbing a jar of peanut butter from the cupboard. Harry watched her with keen interest._

"_You still eat that?" he asked softly, watching her cut up the apple expertly with her wand and start to dip the pieces into the peanut butter. It had been one of her favorite snacks in Hogwarts, one that she could never get Harry to try. He liked peanut butter on bread, thank you very much, but carrying it over to fruit he found rather odd. Vaguely he realized that she had done magic when she was not yet of age. The rule must have been lifted when the school closed, or changed in some way. He began to realize just how much he had missed._

_She just nodded faintly, still not looking at him._

_Sighing with the realization that this talk was going to come sooner rather than later, he grabbed his glass of water and went over to the table, sitting across from her._

"_Mum didn't tell me you guys were coming," she said as he sat down. She still wasn't looking at him._

"_It was kind of a last minute decision," Harry admitted, sipping at his water. It felt good running down his dry throat. "We all agreed we needed some kind of rest."_

_Finally looking up at him, she looked worried for the first time that night. "So you guys aren't done? You haven't found all of them yet?"_

"_Two more," Harry said, resting his forehead on his propped up hand, knowing that he needed to be getting sleep right now._

_She was quiet. Quiet enough to make Harry look up at her worriedly. But by the look on her face, he spoke before she even got the words out._

"_No, Ginny."_

_Her face hardened again. "You don't even know what I was going to say." Neither of them were whispering anymore, but they were both avoiding shouting._

"_Oh yes I do," Harry said, nodding. "But what I really don't know is why you were even going to ask it when you know that I wouldn't let you."_

"_Since when do you have to let me do anything?" Ginny's voice rose a bit, but Harry could tell she was keeping it in check quite a bit. "I'll tell you the same thing I told my overprotective prat of a brother, Harry Potter: I may not be of age, but I am not a little girl anymore and I can take care of myself."_

_Harry sighed. "I know that more than anyone, Gin, but I cannot, I will not let you come with us."_

"_I'm not your damn damsel in distress, Harry," Ginny argued, forgetting her food by now and glaring at him. "I went through the Department of Mysteries too. I fought the night the Death Eaters came to Hogwarts and I was there when we had to bury Dumbledore."_

"_You were also there when I had to drag Cedric out of the maze and you were there when we found the writing on the walls and…" he paused, swallowing and blinking back a tear, "and I was there when you were in the Chamber and you were dying right in front of me and I had no idea how to save you…"_

_He looked back up at her. "Merlin, Ginny…don't you know how many nightmares that night has given me? Especially since I kissed you that night in the common room? Do you have any idea how many times I have nightmares of Voldemort finding you again and making me chose between you and destroying another Horcrux?"_

_She had gone a bit pale, but fought back, none-the less. "You think it's been easy for me? Not even knowing where you were and wondering if I would ever see you again? I've been the good little girl, Harry. I listened to your speech at the end of last term and I knew that you had to make the decision on your own so I let you go…I let you go…but not really…" he voice had dropped back down to a whisper. "When I saw you that night in Hogwarts by the hospital wing, I thought I had been dreaming. That's why I didn't talk to you. That's why I didn't stop to say hi…" A tear pricked at her eye._

_Harry had wondered about that night. It had only been a split second glance right after his chat with Malfoy, but it had left him with so many questions that he just had to put it aside if he was going to deal with anything else at that moment._

"_I would have written if we could have-"_

"_Oh shut up," Ginny interrupted tensely. "That's a lie and you know it. You send letters to the Grangers, Remus and Mum every month."_

_He fell silent, having no reply. _

"_Listen…I don't know how I can make this any better," Harry admitted as Ginny went back to her snack. "I told you at the end of last term-"_

"_Yes, Harry, I remember quite clearly what you told me," she said a bit bitterly. "Maybe I was just being optimistic, but I always hoped that somewhere along the line you would realize how cliché it all sounded and start snogging me again."_

_Harry blinked twice. "Excuse me?"_

_Ginny, in her ever tactful manner, locked eyes with Harry. "It's never going to work, you and me, because you've built up this grand illusion in your mind that for some reason, Voldemort won't care about hurting me because we're not boyfriend and girlfriend anymore. But let me tell you something, Harry, that's the biggest bunch of BS I've ever heard in my life. You know why? Because even if you run away, even if we agree to never see each other again or communicate in any way…" she took a deep breath, steadying herself, "if Voldemort somehow found a way to kidnap me, he'd make sure you knew about it and I know you would come to save me, boyfriend or not."_

_Harry blinked again, this time fighting back a tear at her words, their simple truth dawning on him._

"_You've got it in your head that just because we're not sharing it with friends and family, Voldemort won't find out that we still care about each other…" her tear fell, "…and love each other very much."_

_The words seemed to stop his heart for a few moments and Harry felt like the biggest fool in the world._

_He blinked back more tears, breathing in heavily and looking away from her, closing his eyes and shaking his head slightly. His hands came up to his head and leaned his elbows on the table in front of him. _

"_How am I supposed to do it, Gin? What am I supposed to say to that?" _

_He felt her reach out to lay a hand on his shoulder, but he shrugged it off, standing up from the table and turning quickly to pound on the wall behind him, making only a muffled bang that didn't carry too far. _

"_I can't make myself not care…" He turned towards her, a single tear rolling down his cheek. "I'm always going to care." He turned his back to her._

_He heard her push away from the table, coming around to him before he could move away from her._

"_Choose your priorities, Harry." She reached up, laying a hand on his shoulder. Warmth spread through him at her touch and as much as he knew he should pull away, he didn't. "Defeating Voldemort is your goal right now. That's what's important: Not Quidditch, not Hogwarts, not even Remus or Ron or Hermione, not even m-"_

_He cut her off, mid sentence in the only effective way he knew to make her from saying something stupid: by turning around quickly and kissing her firmly on the mouth. She melted at once into his kiss, her hands coming up behind his head and running her fingers through his hair. His own hands found the small of her back, pushing her towards him with more urgency than he realized he needed at the time. It had definitely been too long since either of them had shared this and it seemed their puppy love at Hogwarts had grown through the distances to something that neither of them could quite put into words._

_Pulling back finally, her breath breezed gently across his face as he stared into her surprised, but not disappointed eyes that were still so beautiful to him._

"_Why can't you be my first priority?" he whispered pleadingly. Tears were now streaming down her face freely. "Why do I have to be the Chosen One? Let's go…now. I don't care about Voldemort. I don't care about horcruxes or prophecies or dark lords…Is it too much to ask to have one normal thing in my life?"_

_Ginny let out a ragged breath, that sounded like a held back sob, and reluctantly stepped back out of Harry's arms. "This is more important than either of us right now, Harry," she said, her voice quivering. She closed her eyes briefly, taking a deep breath before looking back at him again. "You're right," she gave him a watery smile, "it's not right that I should go, I can see that now. You have your destiny and I have mine. Maybe one day they'll meet, but it can't be right now. You've got to concentrate on what Dumbledore has taught you and save this bloody ungrateful world from a madman." She smiled at him again, the last few tears falling from her eyes. "You know that I'll be right here at the end…you know that I'll never stop waiting for you."_

_He watched her start to walk away with an anguished but accepting expression on his face. Without thinking, he called out to her quickly, and she turned, waiting for what he had to say._

"_I love you, Ginny."_

_Only one side of her mouth drew up slightly, but she replied, _

"_I love you, too."_

_She walked away from him that time, and he never forgot how hard it was to let her go._

----

The first thing that registered with Ginny was the fact that her head seemed to be being hit all over with bludger bats and the pounding echoed through her whole body, making her whimper softly and shut her eyes tighter, wishing she could go back to being unconscious.

A cool cloth was pressed to her forehead, making it a bit better, but not very much.

"I know I said I didn't want you to burn down the house, but you didn't have to go shed your excess energy by getting completely tanked," a dry voice commented, taking the cloth away and pressing it to other areas of her face and neck.

Ginny cracked her eyes open a small bit to see Riley's concerned face peering down at her. She opened her mouth to speak, but only managed a few coughs, each one brining another douse of pain to her head.

"Oh Merlin…" she brought a hand to her head, as if trying to hold it together so it wouldn't explode. "What happened?"

"Harry said you had a row with Edward."

Ginny frowned, getting her eyes to open all the way and looking straight at her house mate. "Harry?"

She nodded nonchalantly, reaching over to Ginny's sideboard and grabbing a glass of potion that looked foul and added a small caplet of something in it, twirling it as she let it dissolve in the brown, murky potion. "He's the one who flooed me a while ago. Said you might need a little help getting up this morning. I only got back about an hour ago."

Letting out a long sigh, Ginny sat up gingerly, wondering why she ever got drunk. "I don't really remember…I didn't do anything stupid, did I?"

Riley shook her head smoothly, handing Ginny the goblet of potion. "He sounded more concerned than anything else."

"Knowing Harry that means I did something truly idiotic and he's trying to save me from my own humiliation." She held her nose as she downed the drink in two gulps, pulling a face, but thankfully the pressure in her head eased up quite a bit.

"That doesn't make much sense." Riley took the cup from Ginny and handed her some muggle pills and a glass of water. Being muggle-born, Riley had an odd way of mixing both of her heritages, but most of the ideas she had turned out to be ingenious, so Ginny dutifully downed the two pills as well.

"That's what Harry does," the youngest Weasley, "he saves everyone…even from ourselves."

"Humm…" Riley didn't say much as she gathered up her potion ingredients and put them back into her kit, leaving the cup of water with Ginny. Looking back at her, she wore a tired grin. "Those pills will kick in, in about 30 minutes. Till then I suggest you do a non-strenuous activity like taking a shower or getting your arse to the fireplace and thanking your 'friend' for not letting you rot in that nightclub last night."

Ginny rolled her eyes at Riley's retreating back. Sometimes it was a pain to have a training medwitch as a roommate, especially one who could read people so well.

----

Ron Weasley's shaky hand folded up his short but to-the-point note and he sealed it quickly, attaching it to the leg of his owl and sending it flying out the window.

He stood there for a moment, wondering if anyone had any idea what he was going through and had any brilliant advice for him at that moment…But he had made his decision. He just hoped that he and his family could live with the consequences of his actions and hoped dearly that he would figure out something to tell his wife before she found out on her own.

Warm arms wrapped around his stomach and an oversized belly rested warmly on his back. He turned and smiled as he wrapped his arms around his beautiful wife and they both walked back into the kitchen where Misty was preparing a late breakfast for them.

----

Nymphadora Lupin liked to give herself some credit for the times that she tried desperately to serve her husband breakfast, but after failing so miserably, so often, she knew the only one who would give her credit was her oaf-of-a-husband himself, Remus.

She muttered a few swear words as she waved her wand, making the dishes start to clean themselves as she tried to salvage all the eggs that weren't burnt. Unfortunately, as she took the eggs over to the table, she managed to trip on the tie of her bathrobe and both she and the eggs flew unceremoniously up in the air before landing abruptly on the floor.

Before she even had time to sit up, there was a bright flash and a distinct click of a camera before footsteps began running down the hall and up the stairs.

Eyes going wide, Tonks scrambled off the floor, forgetting the eggs that were covering the kitchen tile and raced after her husband, annoyed at being caught, but inwardly comforted at the Marauder in him showing every so often.

----

Sunday mornings for Harry consisted either of breakfast at Ron and Hermione's or Remus and Tonk's. Unfortunately, both couples had cancelled on him today, so he had enjoyed sleeping in, eating dry cereal and drinking milk straight from the bottle.

There always were perks to living alone.

After a short firecall to Riley and vowing not to do work today, he had tidied up his kitchen and retreated to his small study to catch up on some reading he had wanted to do for a while. He had a large selection of muggle fiction books that Hermione had been giving him throughout the years since she realized he didn't want to read textbooks or political and historical stuff. They had all turned out to be rather interesting to Harry and a great release from the many hectic years he had since Hogwarts. He was currently right in the middle of the series of _Lord of the Rings_ and was finding it highly entertaining from a wizarding point of view. He remembered seeing somewhere that they had made some muggle movies of it a few years ago and was keen to check those out as soon as he finished reading.

"Harry?"

The voice was softer and much less obnoxious from the rude call Ron had given him a few days ago and, marking his place in _The Two Towers_, he hurried out of his library into his family room where he was surprised to see Ginny Weasley offering him a pathetically thankful face.

"I did something stupid, didn't I?" she said without preamble.

Harry chuckled, leaning down to bring his face level with hers. "You don't remember anything?"

She shook her head in the negative. "Last thing I remember was Edward showing me that blasted ring again…then I guess I started drinking too much, though I don't blame myself."

"Ah, yes…Edward…" Harry tried not to sound annoyed as he said the name. "You sure know how to pick them, Gin. Understand I'm saying that purely sarcastically."

She rolled her eyes at him. "Anyway, thanks," she said sincerely, catching his eye. "I guess I was lucky you were there last night and not Ron." She looked worried. "You didn't tell him, did you?"

"Actually they cancelled on me this morning," Harry said dryly. "I was left to my own devices which would be more of a welcome change if I had any food in this house."

"Why don't you come over here?" she said without hesitation. "Riley's home, so of course she's going to cook."

"It's eleven in the morning, Gin," Harry pointed out.

"Well, I'll get her to make a good lunch."

"Actually I…er…already have plans for lunch," Harry said, hesitating.

Her eyebrows rose. She obviously wasn't expecting that, but she covered her surprise well. "Harry Potter has a date? Call the newspapers, folk-"

"Don't you dare!" Harry cut her off, half joking, half serious. "Besides," he sighed, "it's not a date. More like a…meeting."

She looked skeptical, but accepted his excuse and with another thank you and goodbye, whooshed out of the fireplace.

Harry let out a breath as she finally was gone, not because he didn't want to talk to her anymore, but he really didn't want her to ask any more questions about his lunch "meeting".

He didn't want to tell her that the reason he wasn't accepting her invitation was because he had already accepted one from his ex-girlfriend, Emily Lennon.

----

_A/N: Next time: Emily and Harry...yes you know you are curious_


	5. How Could I Trust You?

_a/n: Happy Single's Awareness Day! Not much lovey dovey stuff in here for the occasion, sorry…enjoy! And please review!_

**Chapter 5 – How Could I Trust You?**

"_Oh my dear,_

_When I was dreaming,_

_I wish you would take your lies elsewhere_

_Don't give them to me."_

_- "Reconcile Our Differences" by the Dave Matthews Band_

_----_

_One of the few perks of working with muggles was that he always ended up getting an office to himself, no matter how short the stay. But even here in America, it seemed they hadn't given up all protocol and Harry found himself lounging comfortably in his oversized chair, eyes searching a few meaningless reports that had been sent to him earlier. _

_He glanced at the clock on his wall and a flicker off annoyance crossed his face. His 11 o'clock appointment was late by almost a half hour now. He had contemplated skiving off and going to lunch early, but this was one meeting he knew he couldn't skip._

_The American Liaison was scheduled to meet with him almost thirty minutes ago and they still hadn't shown up. Harry knew how carefully the International Wizarding Relations had been in getting together to work on this case, but he thought the situation was pretty clean cut and it was obvious that both England and America had their own reasons for participating in this particular case._

_The muggle phone in Harry's office rang shrilly and, annoyed, he contemplated not picking up. It was either one of the muggles wanting to bring him more paperwork, or the American Liaison calling to finally give an excuse as to why he couldn't come. He stared at it, letting the ringing go off three more times before he finally picked it up._

"_Potter."_

"_Mr. Potter? This is Emily Jaron, CIA. I was scheduled to meet you at 11 this afternoon?"_

_Harry frowned, glancing back over at his papers, fumbling to find the note from the CIA director, Jonathan Brinkley._

_Jaron? Harry read it over quickly. Is there a reason that he never even suspected that it might be a women? Oh well. At least he wouldn't have to deal with some tough, macho American who liked to watch too many movies._

"_Yes, Miss Jaron," he recovered quickly._

"_I'm terribly sorry for the lateness on my part. My meeting with the Chief of Staff went over and I only now just got away."_

_Her voice was perky, but had underlying roughness about the edges. _

"_Well, I break for lunch in about ten minutes. Perhaps we could reschedule for this afternoon?"_

"_I'm afraid my schedule is awfully busy this afternoon. I was hoping perhaps we could meet for lunch somewhere. I'm not usually this forward, but I think we all want this case to move forward as quickly as possible and I have some interesting details to show you about the attack last night."_

_Harry sat up straighter and leaned forward. "Last night? Where the bloody hell was this?"_

"_The statement never got to you?" She sounded upset and, if not, a little bit ticked at someone. Harry hoped it wasn't him._

_Harry fumbled through the numerous reports, but knew that it wasn't there. "All I received this morning was the backup files for the ten latest cases that happened over in Virginia."_

_She sighed a bit, sounding exhausted. "Welcome to the CIA Mr. Potter. I'm actually surprised you received that many. We have a dozen new interns who started just a week ago and they're not exactly the most reliable errand boys." Her voice was apologetic, but not enough to get rid of Harry's annoyance at being left out of the loop, even though he knew it wasn't her fault._

"_Well, I guess that's a perfectly good reason to meet for lunch then, Miss Jaron." He paused, thinking. "Do you have any suggestions? I've only been in town for a day or so and don't quite know the best places to eat around here."_

"_There's a small wizarding mall over past the Lincoln Memorial. Just go around the back and knock twice on the door. It's got muggle protection charms on it, so no one will notice you. Get the map to point you towards Jody's: best Italian you've ever tasted in you life."_

_Harry scribbled down a few names so he wouldn't forget and smiled, even though he couldn't see her. "Perfect. I'll see you in about 15 minutes then?"_

"_I'll be waiting, Mr. Potter."_

_----_

"So what is it that brings you to England after all these years?" Harry asked to his companion, giving a quick smile to Rosmerta as she delivered their meal, leaving as quickly as she came, the Three Broomsticks brimming with customers. He turned back to his dining companion, wondering why he had come.

Emily accepted the small note from the owl that was perched on the nearby window and it flew away quickly. Harry thought it looked an awfully lot like one of Ron and Hermione's owls. He watched as she scanned the letter quickly, a jot of disappointment marring her face before it was quickly replaced by a smile and she shoved the note in her purse, looking back up at Harry sweetly. "Business, as a matter of fact, with your friend, Ronald Weasley."

She shot him a winning grin which he saw right through, but stayed silent, vowing to himself to check up on Ron as soon as they parted company. The idea that was Ron's owl was not so ridiculous now.

"What about you, Harry?" She picked up her fork and looked at him sweetly. "What is it that brings you here tonight?"

"I came because you asked me to," he answered shortly, taking a bite out of his sandwich. If he had been truthful, the best reason for why he had come was probably to get some good food.

"You were curious, weren't you?" Emily seemed rather smitten with her deviousness and giggled a bit.

"I suppose," Harry shrugged. It was half true. Aside from the food, he had been very keen on figuring out why Emily would have approached him again after all this time. "Why did you ask me?"

"To see if you would come of course!" She took a sip of water. "And you did!" She talked as if this was the most wonderful fact in the world.

Harry glanced at her over the rim of his mug of butterbeer.

"I see you haven't changed one bit, though I can't say I'm surprised."

"Disappointed?" She gave him a very fake puppy dog pout.

Harry couldn't hold back his disgusted look. "For years."

"I see you haven't forgiven me yet."

"You haven't given me much of a reason to."

She twiddled with her salad, looking sad, but Harry felt no spark of sympathy for her. Taking a small bit, she chewed it quickly and swallowed. "Do you have a certain request that would give you a reason?"

Harry did a slight double take, but recovered quickly. He knew she had been trying to catch him off guard, no matter how innocent the act seemed. He cursed himself inwardly for showing a sign of weakness, however short it lasted.

"I doubt you would fulfill any of the requirements," he said dryly, taking another bite of his sandwich. Merlin, it tasted good.

"I used to, don't you remember?"

Harry chose not to respond.

"And to think, I was so nearly Emily Potter…" She giggled. "It does have a certain ring to it, doesn't it?"

The rest of the sandwich in front of him suddenly seemed nauseating and he wanted to throw up. Emily Potter? Dear Merlin, where was this woman coming from? The mere thought of it sent a ton of unwanted images into his head. He brushed them aside quickly and got a hold of himself before she could relish in her triumph anymore.

"Having daydreams still, Emily?"

She smiled slyly. "Why don't you call me Emmy again?"

He shrugged. "I don't care for the name."

"Well, you used to adore it."

He stopped his drink right in front of his mouth and looked at her, annoyed. "Yes…that's why." He downed the rest of his drink. "Well, as enlightening as this conversation has been, I've really got to go." He stood, throwing a few galleons on the table and starting to turn before he felt her hand reach out and grab his.

He paused, turning toward her with carefully concealed anger masked by a blank face.

"I'm sorry, Harry."

If he hadn't known her so well, he could have sworn he saw sincerity in her eyes.

"You think that makes a difference?" he raised a curious eyebrow.

"Well, I was hoping it would."

He pulled out of her grasp. "I'm sorry too, Emily, but not towards you, towards myself. I imagine my life if I had never met you…and I wish every day that I hadn't answered that phone call."

He grabbed his cloak off the back of his chair and quickly left the pub, not looking back.

As he apparated back to his flat, he still wondered why he had gone.

----

Ron hesitated, his hand frozen in the act of knocking on the door in front of him. He could hear the sounds of the muggle neighborhood: birds chirping, children playing, lawn mowers running, and various other muggle contraptions.

Before he could finally make up his mind, the door swung open, an annoyed-looking Harry standing there.

Ron blinked once, startled, and in that second, Harry's expression changed instantly to relief and he smiled at his friend.

"Ron?…hey. What are you doing here?"

Dropping his arm, Ron shoved his hands in his pockets and followed Harry gesture to step into the house. "Expecting someone else?" Ron asked wirily, trying to lighten the mood.

Harry had the gall to look embarrassed as he shut the door and waved the comment away. "I just thought…never mind." He shook his head, leading Ron into the family room.

Ron allowed himself to smirk. Every time anyone was able to catch Harry Potter off guard was quite a personal victory. The smile disappeared, however, when he remembered what he had come here for.

"Harry...I gotta talk to you, mate."

"Well, obviously," Harry said with a smirk, sitting down in an armchair and tossing Ron a chocolate frog out of a nearby bowl. Ron caught it easily and took a seat across from his friend. "So what is it? You and Hermione get in a fight?"

"Err…not yet," Ron said truthfully, fiddling with the candy, not really hungry.

Harry leaned forward, interested now. "Not yet? You must be getting pretty good if you can predict everything that she's gonna get mad about."

Ron shifted uncomfortably in his seat, saying nothing.

Being the best friend that he was, Harry's face dropped, and the conversation suddenly became serious. "Ron?"

He couldn't seem to find the words. His head fell into his hands. "Merlin, Harry…how am I going to get out of this?"

"It's Emily, isn't it?"

Ron's head shot up quickly in surprise. "What?"

"Miss _Lennon_." The name dripped with disgust and Harry's face showed it. "What did she do?"

He just decided to come out and say it. "Blackmail."

Harry, though, seemed surprised. "On you? With what?" Little did Harry know, his supposedly kind words were just making it harder for Ron It was true. Who would suspect the famous Ron Weasley of having anything in his life that would be enough leverage to blackmail him?

"The game in '98."

"But that was your first game as a starter…" the truth dawned on Harry's face halfway through his thought. His expression showed amazement (the bad kind), disbelief and a slight amount of hurt. "Oh, Ron….you git. Tell me you didn't."

"They were going to make me sit on the bench another year, Harry! A year!" He stood up, running a hand through his hair and starting to pace, unable to look at his friend's face anymore. "What would you have done?"

"I would have kept my arse on the bench!" Harry stood, his fuming gaze directed over to Ron who wouldn't look at him. "What did you do? Knock off Daughterly and make it look like an accident?"

"He wasn't hurt bad, just enough so that he couldn't play! Besides, I just wanted a chance to show them that I could do it!"

"You told me that Daughterly splinched himself…" Harry's accusing voice was cutting right through Ron.

"He did!"

"…on accident!" Harry finished. "You're telling me you messed with apparition? Do you even have the spells and channels to do that?"

"No," Ron huffed. "Lennon did."

He could just see Harry's eyes bulging. "What?"

"He was our American investor! And the one giving us the most money! He tried to talk to Fallow to get me in to play, but Fallow insisted I needed more bench time."

"You'd been on the team for three months, Ron," Harry spat. "No one gets out of reserves that quickly."

"Lennon needed us to win," Ron continued, gritting his teeth. "Daughterly wasn't good enough to go up against the Tornados-"

"And you were?" Harry interjected.

"Well, obviously!" Ron said instantly. "We won, didn't we?"

Ron finally looked over at Harry who was staring at him with disgust. He finally sank back down into his chair, blowing out a sigh and running a hand through his messy hair.

"What does she have?" Harry finally said after Ron had gone back to his chair as well.

"What?"

Harry looked even more annoyed that he had to repat himself. "Emily. What does she have that proves you were in on this?"

Ron hesitated a moment. "A letter."

"And what does she want you to do?"

"Loose Saturday's game."

Harry took a violent bite out of a chocolate frog and let out another heavy sigh as he chewed, closing his eyes and leaning back in his chair.

"You're a bloody idiot, you know that?"

"Yeah…"

They were both silent and Ron, though relieved that Harry wasn't yelling at him anymore, wondered what his friend was thinking.

"Well….no more than I am for getting involved with her in the first place…" he heard Harry mumbled before he spoke aloud to Ron. "You wrote her a note this morning?"

He didn't ask how Harry knew about that. "Yeah…I told her I wouldn't lose." Ron felt the blood drain from his face as that reality slipped over him once more. "She said she'd give the letter to the press." He suddenly turned pleading. "You've got to help me, Mate. I have to break this to Hermione before she finds out from someone else or worse, from the press."

"Nah, Emily's too sneaky for that," Harry said quickly, leaning forward and looking at Ron again. "She won't go to the press right away. She might even try to get you to reconsider. After all, Saturday is a long way away and she liked to see people squirm when they're under her power...Believe me, I know."

Ron wanted to ask why he knew, but reckoned that was a conversation for another time.

"We'll get through this." They locked eyes and Ron reminded himself how lucky he was to have Harry Potter as a friend, especially at times like this when he seriously looked like he could kick some arse. "She already messed up my life. I'm not letting her do that to you and Hermione."

----

Ginny Weasley paced up and down her room, her mind muddled more than it was this morning when she was hung over, trying desperately to figure out why she was so interested in Harry Potter's "lunch meeting" and wondering for the hundredth time why Harry wasn't the one who was trying to give her a ring.

----

Nymphadora Lupin smiled to herself as she corked up two bottles full of love potion, being sure to keep them hidden from her husband as she snuck them away for two unsuspecting individuals. A third bottle had less desirable ingredients in it and was carefully disguised as an Evening Prophet and sent directly to the awful woman who seemed to bring to much grief into Harry Potter's life.

----

Emily Lennon scratched angrily at the boils that weld up on her skin as she disposed of the Evening Prophet that had no doubt been tampered with by yet another person she had gotten the better of. She hastily rubbed on some soothing lotion that would get rid of the boils by morning and smiled as she fell asleep, thinking of her ingenious plans for the next day.

----

Ron Weasley held his wife close in the middle of the night, praying to all the gods that were that Fate would stop being so cruel to him and that Harry would be able to figure out something soon before everything Ron loved was threatened to be taken away from him.

----

Harry Potter couldn't seem to concentrate very well that next morning and missed two appointments before he apparated home and started writing down ideas that he had to get that pestering woman out of his and his friend's lives for good.

----

Remus Lupin would normally have been amused to see his best friend's son looking so out of it during their meetings, but knowing that Emily Lennon was in town and was no doubt doing something to Harry again, Remus made it a point to talk to Tonks that evening and figure out what exactly she had put in that newspaper and how they could make the effects ten times worse.

----

Hermione Weasley wasn't expecting visitors, especially since Ron was already gone for practice, but being the gracious host that she was, calmly smoothed out her shirt as she went for the door and put a smile on her face as she opened it. She did not, however, continue smiling as she saw Emily Lennon on her doorstep, grinning sweetly and inviting herself into the Weasley house before Hermione could even attempt to ask her to leave.

----

_A/N: If those ending passages didn't make much sense, they will in the next chapter ;) Please review!_


	6. We've Never Been So Alone

_A/N: Sorry about the missed update. I had a pretty crummy week and it was busy like crazy. I hope you all enjoy this chapter!_

**Chapter 6 – We've Never Been So Alone**

"_You wash your hands and come out clean  
Fail to recognize the enemies within  
You say we're not responsible  
But we are…"_

_- "We Are" by Ana_

----

_Ginny could hear the raised voices as soon as she stepped off the elevator. Glancing around quickly, not really knowing where she was going, she decided to follow the arguing voices of her brother and others who were gathered outside a private room a few hallways away._

_When they caught sight of her, Ron's face softened just a bit, but Hermione spoke up first._

"_He's fine." She wrapped a comforting arm around Ginny, giving her shoulders a squeeze. _

_Ginny didn't say anything, but looked around at the others: Remus was carefully avoiding her gaze, as were her two other brothers, Bill and Charlie. Ron kept glancing towards the closed door with worry. Ginny's dad was in a quiet conversation with McGonagall, Kingsley and Tonks. _

_She saw the signs of battle all over them from torn clothing to gashes in arms and legs. Charlie's arm was in a sling and Hermione's ankle was bound. She supposed she didn't look much better. Besides the pure exhaustion she was feeling, Ginny knew she had a wide cut on her back, a makeshift bandage covering it, along with both her hands bound in bandages from being burned by the flames as she tried to help evacuate the Three Broomsticks._

"_If he's fine, how come no one's in there with him?" Ginny asked carefully. It was amazing that only three hours ago, the greatest dark wizard in history had finally been defeated, but no one here felt like celebrating._

"_He doesn't want to see anyone, Gin."_

"_What!" Ginny pulled away from Hermione as she heard Ron's words._

"_Ginny, he's confused and disoriented. We have no idea what he went through during those two hours," Remus reminded her sympathetically._

_She remembered the two hours vividly. Harry had finally reached Voldemort and they had both begun to duel furiously. Soon enough, Priori Incantantum was activated and a few moments later, both Harry and Voldemort seemed to be encased in a large gold bubble, blocking everyone else from view, and no one knew what was happening inside, and why the bubble hadn't broken. Ginny had seen Harry disappear into it and had tears running down her face for the next hour as she struggled just to stay alive on the torn battlefield._

_Finally, when no more tears could come and there were no more death eaters standing, the Order had gathered around the bubble, watching nothing, and waiting for something. An hour after that, they were all blown off their feet as the bubble exploded outward. They were all quiet as the smoke cleared and Harry stood their, his wand gripped tightly in his hand. His eyes found Remus' and he clearly stated, "He's dead" before falling to the ground._

_Everyone was afraid he had died, but they had gotten him to St. Mungo's in time. To her annoyance, Ginny had been sent back to the Burrow to tell Mrs. Weasley the news. She had been caught in her mother's web for almost two hours before she had finally managed to make it back to St Mungos._

_And now she was here…waiting…like everyone else._

_But she wasn't like everyone else. Harry knew that._

_She stepped towards the door, quickly blocked by Ron. "What do you think you're doing?"_

_Ginny glared up at her older brother. "Don't push me right now, Ron. You'll get a bat boogy hex in your face."_

"_Ginny, I'm serious."_

"_So am I."_

_They glared at one another for a few minutes. Ginny felt Hermione reach out and put a restraining hand on her shoulder, but other than that, no one moved._

"_None of us can even begin to imagine what this was like for him," Ron finally said. "He deserves all the space he wants."_

_Ginny's nostrils flared as her temper rose. "He doesn't want space from me."_

"_How do you know that?" Ron finally snapped._

_Hermione's hand tightened and Ginny felt her jaw drop, rage boiling inside her. Quick as lighting, her fist came up, punching Ron right in the nose before he could think about dodging._

_That seemed to snap everyone into action again, but before anyone could stop her, Ginny slipped into the silent room. _

----

There were worse situations to be in, but Hermione Weasley couldn't think of any at the moment.

"I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to leave," she said through gritted teeth, watching Emily Lennon casually looking at the portraits and decorations that donned the walls and shelves of the Weasley sitting room.

"Surely you wouldn't be so rude as to dismiss me before I even told you why I was here?" Emily straightened up and turned around to look at Hermione.

"Apparently you overestimate my hospitality. I could really care less why you are here." Hermione walked swiftly over to the door, opening it and motioning Emily out. "All I care about is you leaving and never coming back."

Emily didn't seem phased by her rudeness, merely smiled and began a rather slow walk towards the door. "You seem to have already made up your mind about me, Mrs. Weasley. Can you really make such a judgment after a single dinner party?"

"Despite not knowing the details or circumstances, Harry Potter is my friend, and whatever you have done to him has already earned my distrust," Hermione said stiffly as she led Emily down the hallway towards the front door, both of them walking rather slowly.

"Then you do not believe in redemption?"

Hermione sniffed. "For a select few, yes. But being through a war…once my good judgment is lost, it is hard for someone to get it back."

Emily stopped and turned towards Hermione, her face curiously gleeful. "Then I am sorry for you, Hermione, truly sorry."

Ignoring the use of her first name, Hermione replied, "I appreciate your sympathy, but I would prefer your departure." She waved her arm again, motioning to the door that was still a ways ahead of them.

"Do you know, Miss Weasley," Hermione frowned at the title as they both began to walk slowly up the hall again, "I don't mind your talking morality a bit. Morality is simply the attitude we adopt towards people whom we personally dislike. You dislike me. I am quite aware of that, and I am beginning to detest you. And yet, I have come here to give you some advice." Emily stopped suddenly, situating herself right in front of Hermione and her voice dropping slightly to a more serious tone. "I hold your husband in the hollow of my hand. And if you are wise, you will make him do what I tell him."

Hermione felt her heart drop, her face an open mask of shock as she heard the words. Shock quickly turned to rage as she glared at the slightly shorter woman. "How dare you class my husband with yourself!" She jabbed a finger towards the door, not noticing that it was being opened and a person entered quietly. "Get out of my house?"

"Your house?" Emily sounded appalled. "A house bought with fraud and lies?"

Hermione's head whirled as she heard a muffle footstep and turned to see Ron there, still in his Quidditch robes, his face pale and his expression shocked. She caught his eyes, confusion clouding all other thoughts as she heard Emily continue to speak.

"Ask him where the fame came from. Ask him about the game in 1998 and just how easily he was able to get into the Keeper position and make it look like pure coincidence." Emily had been walking towards Ron and she stopped right in front of him, looking innocent. "Ask him about his tainted past." Her head turned to Hermione. "You will find it much more interesting than mine."

Hermione couldn't find words. Her heart was pounding in her chest and her bottom lip trembled as Ron simply stood there, not denying anything at all.

Silence reigned for several more moments before Ron blinked and looked over at Emily.

"Get out," he said sharply and Hermione saw his shoulders slump slightly as he looked down to the ground. "You've done your worst now."

Emily took a few steps toward the door before turning back to the both of them. "Unless you meet my demands, Mr. Weasley, Mrs. Weasley, I think you'll find that the worst is yet to come."

And without another word, she finally left.

But Hermione didn't even notice, she was still looking at Ron, every emotion from anger to sadness to rage and betrayal swirling through her. Ron caught her eyes and he took a tentative step forward, making Hermione take an unconscious step back.

"Tell me it's not true." Her voice sounded dead, even to her.

"Hermi-"

"Tell me it's not true!" Her hands came up over her belly, covering it with them and backing up another few more steps.

"Just let me explain-" He tried to walk forward a few more steps, but she kept the same distance between them, her hands protectively covering their unborn child as if afraid Ron would leap up and attack. She wasn't so sure he wouldn't anymore. She wasn't so sure about anything anymore.

"Ron, tell me it's not true!" She shouted it out finally, releasing a bit of her rage.

"If you would just let me-" He darted forward quickly, getting close enough to reach one of her arms, but she pulled away sharply.

"No, don't come near me, don't touch me!" she cried, tears leaking out of her eyes.

"Listen to me!" Ron begged, not trying to get close to her again.

"Listen to more lies?" She scoffed. "How many besides this was there, Ron? You've lied to me! To the world!"

"Hermione, please. I have to tell you."

"No," she cried, "I don't want to hear anything!"

She stopped, breathing heavily, her hands still over her stomach and her back pressed against the wall, her whole body shaking with emotions. Ron stood a few feet in front of her, his hand dropping to his sides and his face full of anguish, a tear falling down his face.

Silence reigned again, broken by the sound of small house elf footsteps running away from the scene. It seemed Trixey was scared that her masters were fighting.

Ron gulped. "I suppose I should…go?"

Hermione hesitated for a fraction of a second before nodding once. "Yes. Get out."

Without a backward glance she rushed away to the stairs, tears covering her face and small sobs racking her body as she threw herself down onto their bed and wept.

----

"It's not a pity plea," Ginny argued, looking annoyed. "But come on, Harry, it's the Weird Sisters! You know you want to catch them in concert. If I don't use these tickets I'll regret it for the rest of my life."

Harry sighed, running a hand through his hair as he saw Ginny give him another puppy-dog pout. "And Edward is…where?"

Ginny rolled her eyes, flicking her hair impatiently in the flames that surrounded her head. "Work called him in today, some emergency about the goblins going on strike."

Harry leaned back in his chair, purposefully giving her a hard time. "Well, I dunno, Gin. I had a date with a pizza and the Star Wars Trilogy tonight. Hermione gave them to me for my birthday this year."

She obviously wasn't convinced. "Come on, I'll buy you dinner, huh?" She batted her eyelashes flirtatiously.

A flash of discomfort flickered across Harry face, but he quickly hid it and leaned forward, forcing a smile. "Right you win. I'll be over there in about a half hour, is that alright?"

"Perfect!" She smiled brightly and her face disappeared with a 'pop!' leaving Harry alone again in his house.

He hadn't lied. He was planning on watching some tv tonight, but he had to admit, spending time with Ginny didn't seem like the brightest idea at the time.

Standing up, he made his way back into the kitchen to finish cleaning up a bit. As he wiped down the counters, he thought about their conversation. He wanted to have kept the banter up longer, but it felt too much like their old routine flirting that he had panicked and quickly given in.

He wasn't ready to go back down that road just yet….Harry tossed the dirty rag into a basket and started walking towards the stairs.

A knock snapped him out of his musings and he hesitated for half a moment before reluctantly going to see who it was.

His eyes widened in surprise as Draco Malfoy stood there, looking uncharacteristically disheveled and worried.

"Dear Merlin, Draco," Harry ushered him in quickly and closed the door, turning back to his friend. "What happened?"

"Death Eater attack," he was breathing heavily, "at Hollow's point. I was called up to go help when the situation was getting too far out of hand." Harry knew Draco was referring to his on-call Auror position that he held to bring in the extra money that he needed. "Someone got the Imperious curse on me seconds after I got there." He started chocking on his words, his fear becoming evident. "They made me take down three Aurors before I could finally fight it off." He blinked furiously, pacing around and fidgeting. "Blast it, Harry! They think I killed people! I had to run for my life once I broke the curse…"

He finally stopped, looking Harry straight in the eye. "You believe me…don't you?"

Harry's face betrayed no emotion as he scrutinized Draco. "Of course I do. Or, have you somehow found a way to break an unbreakable vow?"

Draco closed his eyes in relief. "I didn't know where else to go. I tried to find Lupin, but I think he's at work still and I didn't want to attempt to get into the ministry just now."

"No," Harry said, trying to think quickly, "you're just fine here. We'll figure something out." He began leading Draco back to his office. They had just answered when a frantic knock sounded at the front door. Draco and Harry looked at each other in worry and Harry hurried Draco into his office.

"Stay here," he said quietly before hurrying out, shutting the door behind him.

He strode up to the door , collecting himself, but was once again shocked to see Ron standing on his doorstep, a small pack slung across his back, looking as if his entire world had been taken from him.

"Bloody hell, Ron…" Harry grabbed his arm and pulled him inside. "She found out didn't she?"

Not seeming to be able to find words, Ron just nodded, unable to meet Harry's eyes.

Harry's mind raced with desperation, trying to figure out what to do, all thoughts of his earlier conversation with Ginny pushed out of his mind. Both Ron and Draco needed help now, and Harry was the only one who could give it to them.

He gently steered a shaking and silent Ron into the living room, sitting him down on one of the overstuffed chairs.

"Wait here, alright. I've got…I've got to take care of something else for just a moment and then I'll be right back."

Ron gave him a halfhearted nod and Harry gently shut the doors behind him.

As he continued back down the hall towards his study, a loud pecking sounded at the window. Sighing in annoyance, Harry darted into the kitchen, opening a window and allowing the owl to fly in, drop a small note on the table and flying directly back out again. Harry snatched up the note and felt a little more hope drain out of him.

I need you. I'm coming there now.

-Hermione

He was going to need more help with this situation. A devious little plot sprang to his mind.

"Dobby?" He called softly, carefully.

With a crack, the house elf appeared in front of Harry, bowing low. "What can Dobby be doing for Harry Potter sir?"

Harry supposed he should have called Kreature but Dobby obeyed better than that miserable old bat, and he was more inclined to obey Harry rather then spend every moment trying to fid a way around his orders.

"Listen, there's going to be a young woman coming here in a few minutes. Make sure you take her into the dining room and be quiet about it. Tell her I'll come and see here there in a few minutes. Now this is very important Dobby: Don't let anyone else in the house, you understand?"

"Dobby understands, sir. Dobby won't let anyone in except the young lady and will keep her in the dining room until Mr. Harry Potter, sir, comes to see her. Dobby won't let any one else in."

"Great, Dobby, that's perfect." Harry gave the house elf a friendly clap on the back and smiled at him. "Thanks for coming so quickly."

"Dobby is a good house elf, Mr. Harry Potter sir. Dobby will do whatever you tell him to."

Harry smiled. "I know, Dobby, thanks."

Dobby's eyes started to get a little watery at that point and Harry hurried away before the elf could break out into noisy tears and give the game away.

As he headed back to the study, he hoped he knew what he was doing.

----

_A/N: This next chapter coming up should be pretty funny, for those of you whw have seen "An Ideal Husband" :p I hope you understood this chapter and everything. Harry's "plan" will be totally revealed in the next chapter, so stay tuned!_


	7. Everything Right is Wrong Again

_A/N: Sorry again for the wait. There's probably going to be a week between all updates from now on. School is becoming a great pain than I anticipated. Hope you enjoy this chapter!_

**Chapter 7 – Everything Right is Wrong Again**

"_Wake me when it's over, touch my face_

_Tell me every word has been erased_

_Don't you want to know the reason_

_Why the cupboard's not appealing."_

_- "Everything Right is Wrong Again" by They Might Be Giants_

_----_

_Harry poked his head into the silent room, eyes scanning the lavishly decorated dressing room until they fell upon the young bride, facing away form him, standing awkwardly in her gorgeous white dress looking into a full length mirror._

"_Knock, knock," Harry said softly, stepping in quickly as Hermione turned, startled, but relieved at who it was._

"_Merlin, you gave me a fright, Harry!" She held a hand to her chest dramatically. "I thought you were Ron!"_

"_You know very well that Ron is too bloody nervous right now to try to find a way to sneak into your dressing room, much less conveniently come when there is no one else here." Harry gave her a sympathetic look, walking up to her and gathering her into a hug. She accepted it gratefully and he could feel the tension in her body as she clung to him._

_He pulled back, holding both her hands and spreading them out, looking her up and down. "You look beautiful."_

_She blushed, looking down at her dress. "You're sure it's alright?"_

_Harry shot her a look that simply said 'Are you kidding me?'_

"_So what are you doing here? Come to tell me that Ron's drunk again?" She raised an accusing but playful eyebrow._

"_100 sober, I assure you," Harry said firmly. "At least we're assuming that the throwing up is because he's nervous and not drunk."_

_Hermione looked horrified. "He's sick?" She glanced worriedly to the door. "Should I go see if he's ok?"_

"_That's someone else's job, Hermione." He reached up and pulled her chin down so that she was looking at him. "I'm here to make sure you're okay." He held her gaze for a moment, not even needing to use Legilimancy to see that she was terrified. "You are ok, aren't you?"_

"_Truthfully?" He nodded. "I'm scared out of my mind."_

_Harry straightened up, looking smug. "We'll it's about time. We had all figured you were going crazy."_

"_What?" she asked, shocked._

"_Hermione, it's normal to be nervous at your wedding! Everyone is! It's a big step." He came up right next to her, laying both hands on her shoulders. "What's wrong?"_

_She hesitated a moment before it all came spilling out. "What if we fight too much? What if he's forgotten the rings? What if our kids hate me? What if Ron stops loving me? What if I get fat, or ugly?"_

_Harry held up a hand to stop her, looking slightly amused, but mostly concerned. "Okay, number one, I have the rings, so Ron did not forget them, and I promise you I won't. Number two, you and Ron fight, yes, but think of it as a trademark. And think of all the times you'll be able to make up after fights." She blushed red at that comment. "Number three, it's not possible that your kids will hate you, you are way too loveable, clever and good to have that happen. Number four, Ron loves you for who you are, not what you look like. He's liked you since you were a bushy haired first year, remember? Number five…Ron will never stop loving you, Hermione."_

_She was in tears by this point, her bottom lip trembling as she gazed at him. "How do you know?"_

"_Who's your best friend?"_

_She cracked a smile. "You."_

"_Would I lie to you?_

"_N-no…" she hesitated. "But how can you really know?"_

"_Well, I'm Ron's best friend, too." Harry cracked a smile now, thinking of the upchucking groom who was anxiously pacing back in forth on the other side of the castle, waiting for his bride. "Believe me, anyone who knows Ron knows that he worships the ground you walk on and gets happier just because you're in the room."_

_She sniffed pathetically and Harry reached forward again to hug her._

"_Thanks," she whispered in his ear._

"_Love you, 'Mione. Be good to him." Harry pulled back, looking at her seriously. "I'll always be here for both of you, no matter what happens."_

_She gave him a watery smile and a small nod. He let go of her and quietly exited the room._

-----

Harry finished off the quick note, sending it away with Hedwig before turning back to Draco who continued to pace the room irritably.

"Stop being so bloody nervous," Harry chided him, coming out from behind his desk and checking again to make sure the door was shut. "Remus will know what to do."

"Who else is here?" Draco asked suddenly, sounding suspicious.

Harry rolled his eyes. "No one you'd care about."

The Slytherin's face still didn't change and Harry rolled his eyes, sitting down in the nearest chair. "You need to start trusting people, Draco."

"I'd like to see you trust easily after all the shite I've been through."

Harry had his eyes closed, a headache already coming on. "I'll take your word for it," he muttered sarcastically.

----

Dobby rushed to the door as a soft knock was heard and remembering Harry Potter's instructions he let the young women in.

She had a dark blue cloak around her shoulders and as she took off the hood, Dobby couldn't recognize her. He had thought that maybe the nice Miss Hermione Granger or Ginny Weezey would have been coming, but apparently Mr. Harry Potter had made new friends.

"Is Harry here?"

She had an American accent and long, curly brown hair. Her nose also stuck up in the sort of way Dobby's old Mistress Malfoy's did.

Remembering his master's instructions, Dobby made a little bow and was polite. "Mr. Harry Potter is busy right now and asked that I let you wait in the dining room for him."

She looked surprised and Dobby started to worry. "He was expecting me?"

Dobby felt very confused by the women's tone. "Please wait here, Miss. Dobby will be right back.

And he rushed out of the room, hoping he was doing the right thing.

----

Emily smirked at the retreating house elf, wondering what exactly Harry was pulling if he knew she had been coming. She sighed, bored already. Her afternoon at the Weasley's was highly entertaining, but she was still determined to spend more time with Harry before she had to leave England.

As she scanned the room, her eyes fell on a discarded letter that had been left on the kitchen table.

Curiosity getting the better of her, she glanced around to make sure the hose elf was still gone, and went over and picked it up.

A thrill of glee went through her as she read it and she quickly shoved it into her cloak as the distressed house elf came running back into the room.

----

"Do you have any idea what it takes to prove that someone wasn't under the imperious curse?" Draco argued as Harry flipped through a few more books on his shelves, looking unconcerned.

"Remus knows," he said absentmindedly, trying to find the entry Remus had shown him about Court procedures with unforgivables. He tossed the book aside, reaching for another one. What good were all these books if it took him forever to look through them?

"I do to!" Draco complained. "It's impossible! You have to go through hours under Veretiserum coupled with requiring at least two people to vouch for you-"

"Which you have," Harry reminded him.

He could sense Draco's glare, but it was short lived as Hedwig flew back through the window, looking worn out after her quick delivery. Harry and Draco both rushed to the window and as Harry reached for the note, the door creaked open behind them and they both turned, startled.

It was just Dobby.

"Mr. Harry Potter, sir? You is telling Dobby to let the young women wait in the dining ro-"

Harry waved a hand impatiently. "Yes Dobby. Just lead her in there and tell her I'll be there in a few moments."

Dobby looked like he was actually going to argue, but he simply smacked himself in the head and left, shutting the door behind him.

Harry turned to see Draco looking at the space where Dobby had been with keen interest. He turned to Harry with a curiously raised eyebrow. "My father always said he gave Dobby clothes for loosing an enchanted diary. You seem to always have interesting stories to tell, Potter."

Harry bit back a chuckle as he untied the note from Hedwig's leg. "Yes, Dobby is quite an interesting story."

----

Dobby closed the living room door after leading the young women in and pointing her out a seat to sit in. He was still very nervous that something had gone wrong, but he was following orders, and Harry Potter always knew what he was doing.

He ran down the hallway again as he heard another soft knock and, remembering his orders, opened the door just enough to poke his head out and see Miss Granger standing there, looking even more distressed than Dobby.

"Dobby?" What are you doing here?" Miss Granger asked. She looked as if she had been crying recently and Dobby wanted to go back and ask Harry Potter if he could let just one more person in, but he didn't want to disturb Harry Potter any more.

"Dobby is helping Mr. Harry Potter, Miss. Mr. Harry Potter is very busy man."

"Yes, yes I know…" she hesitated, trying to see into the house. "Is Harry here?"

"Mr. Harry Potter is not here right now, Miss." How Dobby hated lying! He had a desire to iron his hands again but settled for biting his bottom lip very hard.

Miss Granger looked even more sad at that statement and also a bit confused. Dobby felt very much the same. Miss Granger was always so nice to him. He hated making her sad. But Mr. Harry Potter's orders were to be followed explicitly, and he didn't want anyone else in the house. Maybe it would all turn out for the best…he hoped.

"Oh….Oh, I see." She took a step back, looking lost and alone. "Well, thank you Dobby."

And without another word she turned and fled back up the walkway and down the darkening street.

----

"Just floo right to Remus' office. He's got it empty for you and he'll meet you there in five minutes," Harry rambled off the instructions, getting out his pot of floo powder and holding it out to Draco as they stood in front of the fireplace in Harry's office.

Draco was starting to look a little green as he took some of the floo powder.

"It'll blow over quick," Harry reminded him. "Remember how much pull I still have as the bloody boy-who-lived."

Draco managed a quick smile of thanks before he stepped into the flames and was gone with a giant 'whoosh!' leaving Harry alone in the room.

Harry took a deep breath, heading out the door. _One down, two to go…_

He ran into Dobby in the hall, the elf looking quite distressed about something. "Dobby! Is she in there?" He asked softly, pointing to the living room.

Dobby could not seem to find words, just nodded and ran back into the kitchen. Harry thought his behavior odd, since Dobby only acted like that when he hadn't done something right, but to Harry it looked like everything was going just as planned.

He opened the door to the living room to see Ron sitting in an overstuffed armchair, head in his hands, his small pack on the floor beside him. He looked up quickly when he heard Harry enter and Harry sighed upon seeing the tear streaks running down Ron's face.

"Oh Merlin, Ron…" Harry whispered, seeing Ron's heartbroken state, "I'm so sorry."

"'S my fault," Ron sniffed, wiping at his eyes, looking furious with himself, but completely distraught at the same time. "I shouldn't have kept such a large secret from her."

Harry cleverly moved around to the other side of the room as if going over to grab some chocolate frogs. As he passed the door that connected to the adjoining dining room, a small wave of wandless magic unlocked it and it slid one or two inches open.

Continuing on his track, he grabbed two frogs and tossed one to Ron, trying to get him into the mood of one of their regular talks where Ron would say more if he knew it was just him and Harry.

"You've told me so often how much you love her, Ron," Harry said, choosing his words carefully.

"More than anything," Ron admitted, smiling a bit, an expression which darkened almost instantly as his thoughts trailed off. "This is too much though. There's no way she's going to forgive me for this one." He turned to Harry. "She had her arms around her stomach, Harry. She thought I was going to hurt her baby!" He looked so lost and confused, a feeling Harry was starting to get from what Ron was saying. "If she thinks that of me…" he shook his head. "No, I'm not going to be able to get out of this one that easily…or at all."

"Hermione's not prefect, Ron," Harry reminded him. "Everyone's got something in their past that they're hiding."

Ron shook his head again, staring at the pictures that lined Harry's mantle. "Not Hermione. I don't think she knows the meaning of the word 'mistake'."

"She loves you, Ron," Harry reminded him, firmly. "I've heard it out of her mouth too. Any couple who has shared as much as you have won't let something like this tear you apart forever, especially not with a child on the way."

Ron didn't say anything. He was now facing away form Harry so he couldn't see his facial expression.

"Maybe right now she's regretting the fight as much as you are," he added for good measure.

Ron snorted. "I doubt it. Wish it, but doubt it."

The sound of a chair scrapping the ground sounded quietly from the adjoining room and Ron's head flew over to the door, his eyes wide.

"What was that?"

Harry acted oblivious, though anyone within the room had most obviously heard that sound. "What?"

"That noise…from the dining room." Ron shot him an accusing look, taking a few steps toward the door.

"What noise?"

"There was a noise!" Ron pointed towards the door.

Harry shrugged, taking a seat on the chair facing away from the door, staring to open his chocolate frog. "You're getting jumpy, Ron. Sit down. There wasn't a noise."

Ron looked at him suspiciously for a moment before rushing over and throwing open the door before Harry could stop him.

Harry heard him gasp in shock and leaned forward, thinking his plan was going right according to schedule. "I have to tell you, Ron, she's as blameless in this as you, and you know it."

He was surprised that neither of them had moved and Ron's voice sounded like barely controlled rage.

"She is deceitful…scheming and devious."

Harry blinked twice. "Excuse me?" He started to turn and saw Ron walking towards the other door, stopping by Harry, looking down at him with as much rage as Harry had ever seen.

"And you…you are false as a friend," he sneered.

"Ron, what…" Harry looked up at his friend, bewildered why Ron was treating Hermione and him with such contempt-

"Good evening, Harry."

The euphoria drained out of him as he heard the voice as cruel as Satan's speak from behind him. He whirled around to see Emily Lennon standing where he had thought Hermione was, a twisted smile gracing her perfect features and a sparkle of amusement in her eyes.

"So tell me, dear friend," the title dripping with sarcasm as Ron spoke to Harry, "do you mind telling me what exactly she is doing here?"

Harry felt like a fish for the number of times he closed and opened his mouth without saying anything. Finally, after looking back and forth between Ron and Emily a few times, he said simply, "I really don't know myself."

Ron didn't seem to pick up on Harry's confusion, and was just now blinded by his own rage. "I suppose you've been planning this from the beginning then?"

Ron was making no sense, even for Ron. "Now just a minute, Weasley-" Harry started, quite as annoyed with Ron now as Ron was with him.

"The act at the party, the romance in America? Quite a devious plot." Ron's face was growing red.

"We've never planned anything!" Harry shot up, annoyed with Ron being so dramatic and accusing towards Harry of all people.

"Except marriage, of course," Emily cut in, walking up to the both of them, the only one who still seemed to be enjoying herself. "Remember, Harry? We were engaged for almost two weeks."

"Well I don't know why you broke it off," Ron said quickly before Harry could speak. He glared from Emily to Harry. "You seem perfect for one another."

He reached down, grabbing his bag before racing out of the room, giving neither of them a backward glance.

Harry stared at the swinging door for a moment before Emily finally spoke.

"I seem to have come at a bad time."

Harry turned to her with disbelieving eyes and saw her giving him a puppy dog face, her head titled slightly as she gazed at him.

Blowing out a tired sigh, he simply collapsed in the chair behind him, hoping that Draco had at least gotten to Remus' alright.

One out of three wasn't so bad…

…wait, yes it was.

----

_A/N: Next a nice long chapter with Harry and Emily and finally answers about why they got together, why he loved her and why he broke off their engagement._


	8. I'm Stronger These Days

**Chapter 8 – I'm Stronger These Days**

"_I survived the crash, survived the burn,_

_Survived the worst, yeah baby, but I learned._

_Survived the lies, survived the blues._

_Almost killed me, but I survived the truth."  
_

_- "I Survived You" by Clay Akin_

_----_

"_Seven, right?"_

_Harry turned and smiled, reaching down to kiss his fiancé quickly on the tip of her nose. "Yeah, I'll be there, alright? I've just got a few more files to go through. We're so close to finding this guy."_

_Emily glanced down at the stacks of papers on Harry's desk smartly. "You sure you don't want help?"_

"_Nah, you're probably sick of this case." He waved her away. "Besides, you've got to get gorgeous for tonight. We're going somewhere special."_

_Emily's eyes light up beautifully. "Really? Where?"_

_Harry winked at her. "Surprise."_

_She pouted for a second before smiling at him and kissing his cheek. "Alright. But don't wear yourself out."_

_Harry couldn't help but watch as she walked out of his office. _

_Turning back to his files, he examined the next suspect. This guy was going to be the death of him. After almost a year in the states trying to track down the group of the cult that was wrecking havoc on both British and American soil, they had finally gotten one fingerprint on one of the members._

_But they weren't matching up to anything._

_A half hour later the frustration caused him to throw his head back, blinking out the haze of boredom. He wasn't getting anywhere here._

_He had half the mind to just drop it till Monday, but something about the fingerprints kept nagging in the back of his mind. He grabbed the muggle magnifying glass out of his drawer, once again, inspecting the carefully preserved index finger print._

_There was nothing special about it._

_He glanced up at the clock and saw that it was already 6:30. Finally giving up for the night he began routinely locking the files up with both a key and his wand (discreetly so the muggles walking by his office couldn't see). _

_Exactly a half hour later he was sitting in Emily's kitchen, waiting patiently as his date used a few more minutes up to get ready. The frustration from work must have shown on his face earlier because as soon as he entered, Emily had brought him into the kitchen and rewarded him with a box of half a dozen powdered doughnuts, an American favorite to Harry that Emily often teased him about. They had both sat down and munched on the doughnuts and some pumpkin juice for a few minutes before Emily left to go finish getting ready._

_He drummed his fingers absentmindedly on the table, trying to think of something other than work. He hoped his reservations were still good if they turned up a half hour late. But even if they weren't, he and Emily didn't really need anything grand. Heck, he's be content with a long walk through the park with her, just holding her hand and being near her all night._

_He glanced at his watch that now read 7:30 and glanced around for his drink. Seeing it was empty, he reached for Emily's half full cup of pumpkin juice but stopped short before he picked it up._

_Emily's fingers, coated with powder from the doughnuts, had left several white fingerprints around her cup._

_He shook his head. No. That was just stupid. Impossible. He was thinking crazy._

_He reached for the cup again and picked it up, bringing it towards his face._

_But his eyes couldn't leave the white marks._

_Suddenly he set the cup down on the table in front of him, his face ducking down to look right at one of the fingerprints._

_He didn't even realize as his hand slipped, knocking the glass completely off the table and spilling the juice all down his nice suit._

_Emily rushed into the room, her eyes wide. "Are you alright? What happened?" She rushed up to him, concern filling her features as she picked up the cup and began wiping the juice off of him in a motherly way. "I swear, that job is doing something to your head. Thank goodness it's the weekend." She finally stopped, looking into his eyes. "It'll be nice to spend some time together, huh?"_

_Harry forced himself to blink and smile, adding some sort of emotion into his voice. "Yeah. Yeah, it will be."_

_He had been staring at that fingerprint for almost two weeks straight now. He had it memorized completely, every curve, every dip, every…mark. And as Emily took his hand and led him out the door, he couldn't get the image away of that fingerprint and the one on his fiancé's cup and how they matched completely._

----

Harry ran a hand through his ever-messy hair, willing the woman behind him to disappear.

Needless to say, she did not.

"What do you want, Emily?" he asked in a tired voice, not turning to look at her. It didn't matter anyway as she proceeded to walk around the couch, coming into view in front of him and taking the other armchair.

"Did you miss me?" she asked, her voice dripping with poisoned honey and her head cocked slightly to the side as she gazed at him.

Harry blinked once. "You're not serious, are you?"

She said nothing but continued to smile. Harry heaved a large sigh, standing up and starting to pace slowly around the room, not wanting to just sit there and watch her watch him. It was times like this he wished he smoked or drank or something. The silence was too unnerving and he wanted to do something with his hands.

He settled for leaning against the mantle over the fireplace, looking at the pictures he had displayed of friends and family.

He turned as he heard her start to chuckle behind him.

"Oh, my dear Harry," she said suddenly. "Can you think of no reason I would want to come see you?"

He heard a distinct click in his head and he worked hard to his the surprise from his face.

"You've come to sell me Ron Weasley's letter."

It wasn't a question. There was no plausible reason that she would be there otherwise. Though he didn't have the foggiest idea what she wanted in return.

She seemed pleased with his answer and stood up quickly, walking a few steps forward to be in front of him. "On condition of course. However did you guess?"

"What's your price?" He turned away from her, leaning an elbow on the mantle and holding his head in his hand. Whatever she was going to say, it was probably going to give him a headache.

He heard her walk up to his side, no doubt looking at the pictures on the mantle, probably basking in the silence that was torturing him. Finally, she spoke.

"I've arrived at a romantic stage," she confessed. He turned his head so he could see as she slid a hand along the picture of Ron and Hermione on their wedding day. "Tragic that it should capture us all, but there you have it." She smiled and looked over to him. "So, on the day that you marry me, I will give you Ron Weasley's letter."

Harry had to blink three times and then remind himself to breath before he had time to process exactly what she had just said.

"Are you quite serious?" His voice was softer than he had wanted it to be, possibly because he was afraid that Emily needed to be carted off to the spell damage section of St. Mungo's.

Her expression seemed…nostalgic. "When I saw you that night at the Weasley's party," she began walking back to her chair, strutting slowly in a way that brought Harry's eyes down to her hips involuntarily, "I knew you were the only man I had ever loved." She turned back to him, her expression brightening as she saw where he had been looking. "That is, if I ever loved anyone at all."

"You question the fact?" he asked smartly, leaning up off of the mantle and crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"Don't you?"

"Touché, madam," Harry topped off his remark with a small salute and then went back to sit in his seat, realizing that this entire conversation was becoming ridiculous. "I'm afraid I would make you a very bad husband, Emily."

"I don't really mind bad husbands," she waxed lazily, walking closer to him, "I've had one already."

As she spoke, she had reached him, leaning down and practically sitting in the chair with him. She was wearing her old perfume that always seemed to intoxicate him. Memories flashed through his mind of the good times they had together.

"Besides…" she leaned down, whispering huskily in his ear. "I can make it very…" she lightly kissed his ear, "…worth…" she kissed his neck, "…your while…"

Before he could clear out the perfume and the hormones that were screaming around the room, she caught up his lips in a searing kiss, momentarily blinding him of whatever else was going on in the world.

He managed to pull away slightly, but the adrenaline was running high and she continued to lightly kiss his mouth and he couldn't find the strength to protest. The need for intimacy was so strong that even her pull, the pull of the woman who he swore to loath for eternity, enticed him to keep his hands on her waist, keeping her close.

"Harry," she sighed as he kissed her neck, "you loved me once…"

The fog was lifting, but he continued to lightly kiss her, his mind now running wildly as he thought of what exactly he was doing.

"You asked me to be your wife…do it again…" her voice was barely more than a whisper and he saw that she was undoubtedly caught up in the fog that had obscured his senses only moments ago.

He brought his mouth to hers and kissed her firmly.

"Emmy," he whispered her name as they broke apart, putting a bit of distance between them. "I have to give you some advice."

She looked quite twitter-pated and chuckled, her arms somehow wrapped around his neck now. "Harry, never give a girl something she can't wear in the evening."

He sighed, his hands loosening from around her waist. Dear Merlin, what was he doing?

"You can't do this, Emily," he said softly, looking her right in the eye. "You can't buy love…and I don't think it's in the power of either of us to give it right now."

"You underestimate yourself, Mr. Potter." Her voice was low and husky. Apparently his sudden reluctance had no affect on her at all. "Me as well." She leaned in as if to kiss him again, but he spoke before she could.

"Giving with no thought of reward? Isn't that what love is?" he leaned forward so their lips were centimeters apart, his hands now sliding into her cloak. "Does either of us really know how to love?"

He kissed her gently, pulling back ever so slightly.

Her breath cascaded across his face and he could feel her head beating loudly.

"I did love you…" she whispered.

He kept perfect eye contact with her as his hand found the pocket inside her robes and just as he was about to reach in, she jerked out of his grasp.

"Not that much," she said quickly, still sitting in his lap, but turning away from him and reaching into her pocket to bring out the note that he was trying to grab.

Blimey, he had been so close…

But it wasn't just the regret of not being able to get Ron's letter.

He leaned back, sighing wearily. "I must admit, I never thought you did." She had never really loved him, then. It was both a relief and a shame. "But, I thought it worth a try at least."

She seemed a little ruffled at his attempt to seduce her (not a very good attempt, but an attempt nonetheless), and kept her back to him, sliding off his lap onto the couch right next to him. "I respect you all the more for the attempt," she admitted, her voice strangely high pitched. "I take it you reject my offer?"

Harry stretched out and crossed his legs in front of him. "I'm afraid I must. Even as tempting as it seems, it's really little more than blackmail."

She turned her head slightly so he could see her profile. She smiled a tad. "True."

----

It wasn't the first time that Ginny Weasley was annoyed with Harry Potter, though it was definitely the first time she was both annoyed, embarrassed, worried and ashamed all at the same time.

She tried to walk as she heard the knock on the front door, but she ended up sprinting and all the euphoria leaving her as she saw her sister-in-law standing there, practically in tears but doing a very good job of hiding it.

"Ginny," Hermione gave her a small smile. "Er…Harry isn't here, is he?"

The annoyance crept back in and Ginny heaved a sigh. "No."

"Oh dear…" Hermione wrapped both her hands around her enlarged stomach, her eyes tearing over. Ginny immediately reached out, wrapping and arm around Hermione's shoulders and pulling her into the house.

"Hermione? Gracious, what's wrong? Where's Ron?"

At those words Hermione positively burst out into tears, sobbing onto Ginny's shoulder as Ginny held her, confusion and empathy joining the tumult of emotions that swam through her mind as she led her distraught sister-in-law into her sitting room.

----

"Well I guess I'll look for you at Saturday's game then," Emily said as she gathered up her cloak and prepared to leave. She smiled up at Harry. "At least I'll have the opportunity to see your friend submit to my desires."

Harry's hands were now in his pocket, a curious eyebrow raised towards his ex-fiancé. "I wouldn't be so sure about that."

She straightened up, instantly curious and getting another devious gleam in her eye. "We both know how much Ron values his team. Surely you don't expect him to give it up?"

"I look forward to him proving you wrong," Harry stated truthfully. "In fact, I'd stake my shirt on it."

The gleam was becoming bigger. Dear God, what did he just get himself into?

"Your shirt?"

Harry realized that this was Ron they were discussing, but the idea of one-upping Emily was so thrilling that he ran with it. "Of course. In fact, I'd probably be wiling to stake my entire wardrobe on my friend's honor."

Emily paused, scrutinizing him. "Would you stake your liberty?"

Pause. "Excuse me?"

"Another little gorgeous idea has just popped into my head," she started to pace slightly as she spoke. "And as I think more about it, it is becoming quite a big idea."

Harry hesitated momentarily. "Go on…"

"If, in fact, Mr. Weasley holds true to your word and does not allow the Cannon's to loose on Saturday, I will give you the letter to dispose of as you please. But," her eyes flashed at him, "if he does submit to my desires and backs down from the win…"

"Then will I give you my hand in marriage?" Harry caught on. "To dispose of as you please?"

"Exactly!" She was happy again. A giddy happy like an evil tyrant is over his latest kill. "As a betting man, you must see it has a certain…thrill to it?"

"A betting man?"

"You've gambled your life on several occasions, Harry." She gave him a calculating look. "What's one more time to save the honor of your best friend?"

The words startled him momentarily as she compared marriage to herself like death at that hands of Voldemort. Though, he had to admit, at the moment he couldn't seem much different between them either.

"Perhaps," she said over his silence, "you are now less confident of your friend?"

"No," he said suddenly. "I accept."

"You do?" She sounded surprised at his quick tone.

"I do."

She burst out into short, girlish giggles. "Oh, Harry. Isn't it strange how two such little words can quicken the heart?"

He did not reply, merely brushed past her and exited the room, instructing Dobby to show her out and quickly rushed up to his room, locking his door and collapsing on his bed as the reality of what he had just agreed to sunk in.

----

_He had made himself put on an act, a display. If there was the slightest chance that she had anything to do with the cult…_

_Harry shook his head, shaking the thoughts away. He found himself once again sitting in his office. It was only eight on a Saturday, the Saturday after the most uncomfortable date in his life, but he could not stay around Emily any longer._

_It physically started hurting. Burning._

_She wouldn't do it. She couldn't._

_But then…how long had he known this girl? A year? Was that enough to truly know someone? The Marauders had known Peter for years and none of them had suspected his betrayal._

"_Boss? Boss!"_

_His head snapped up. It was Arlene, his secretary._

"_Emily's on the phone," she said, sounding a little scared. "She sounds mad."_

_Not saying anything to Arlene, Harry picked up his phone. He didn't have to speak._

"_Did I do something wrong?" Emily's voice definitely sounded mad, but it also sounded like she had been crying. _

"_Emmy…"_

"_We were supposed to spend today together, Harry! You were going to help me paint my room and teach me how to do a Wronski Feint…"_

"_Emmy…"_

"_And all I get when I wake up this morning is a note that says 'Sorry, had to go to work. –Harry'."_

_She finally stopped, but Harry couldn't find words to say._

_She sniffed and it sounded like she had started crying again. "You didn't even write 'Love, Harry'…Just 'Harry'."_

_He winced at that remark. "Emmy, I think you're blowing this out of proportion."_

"_Am I?" She challenged. "Your work is becoming more important to you than me, Harry."_

"_That's not true!" He found himself arguing._

_But the line was dead._

_Fifteen minutes later he raced up the stairs of Emily's apartment building, not quite knowing why he was going to such lengths to do this for someone who might turn out to be a traitor, but he wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt. He _needed_ to give her the benefit of the doubt._

_Letting himself into her apartment, he searched the whole place but was unable to find her._

_A frustrated groan emitted from his mouth before he decided to use this as an educational opportunity and pulled out his wand, muttering a tracking spell._

_There were evidences of Emily all over her apartment, but he finally found the spot where she had apparated out and followed her trail._

_He was surprised to not only appear right in front of Emily, but right in front of the man who was currently in lip lock with his fiancé; both of them pressed into a corner of an office on the same floor that Harry himself worked on._

_The lovers tore apart and Emily looked shell-shocked to see him. The man (a guy Harry recognized as Michael, a muggle who worked in Emily's department) started shouting obscenities at Harry about appearing in mid air and seemed to think he was going crazy._

_Harry paid the terrified muggle no mind. His gaze cut through Emily for several seconds, but she didn't move. Without a word to her, he apparated back to his own small apartment, his breath coming in shallow gasps as too many realities crashed down on him._

_One: his fiancé was cheating on him with a muggle. Two: she lied about that, which meant she probably lied about more. Three: that meant his suspicions about her were most likely true._

_Without really thinking, he apparated to his own office, but his frantic search was in vain as he could not find the suspect's fingerprint files anywhere._

_After a few hours of talking to various "bosses" with no ability to convince any of them of Emily's guilt (they blamed it on his recent knowledge of her cheating on him which apparently many people knew about), he packed one suitcase and flew out on the next flight to England. _

_He never spoke another word to Emily until several years later when they ran into each other at a party in England._

----

_A/N: A lot of you probably didn't like that chapter (it was a pain to write Harry with Emily), but it was necessary. sowy. Incase you're wondring about what the timeline is now, at this point of the story it's Monday night (the next post will start on Tuesday morning) and Ron's big game is on Saturday so we've still got a few posts till we find out what's going to happen! ah!_

_Thanks for reading! Please review!_


	9. Since You've Been Gone

_A/N: A few people were asking about it, so here you go:_

_Timeline for the years between Harry's final year at Hogwarts and where this story begins:_

_**1997** – Harry defeats Voldemort, leaves for America to train for the DMLE_

_**1998 **– Ginny graduates and starts an internship at the MoM, Hermione enters Wizarding college, Ron gets picked as the standby keeper for the Chudley Cannons and is "quickly elevated" to permanent keeper_

_**1999** – Remus and Tonks get married, Harry travels to Washington DC on his first assignment, meets Emily and romance blooms (gag me!), Ron and Hermione continue to date/bicker_

_**2000** – Harry proposes to Emily, finds out about her betrayal, goes back to England and moves in with Remus and Tonks, Ron and Hermione continue to date/bicker_

_**2001** – Harry works for the DMLE in England, gets Draco Malfoy a job and finds his own apartment in the city, Ron (at last!) proposes to Hermione_

_**2002** – Ginny moves in with a new roommate (Riley), applies to the Auror academy and is rejected, Ron and Hermione get married (finally!)_

_**2003** – Ron becomes the player-captain of the Chudley Cannons, Hermione graduates from college and gets different on and off jobs_

_**2004** –Harry leaves the DMLE "officially" but does side jobs with Draco for Remus who works for WSM, Ginny applies to the Auror academy and is rejected again_

_**2005** – Harry begins repairs on his parent's old house in Godric's Hollow_

_**2006** – Ginny meets and starts to date Edward, he also convinces her to not apply to the Auror academy again_

_**2007** – Hermione opens her own law firm, Harry moves into the house on Godric's Hollow, Hermione announces she's pregnant_

_**2008** – Ginny applies to the Auror academy again despite Edward's warnings, Remus appointed to head of WSM, Beginning of "Head Over Feet" story_

_(Note: I keep thinking somewhere that I wrote that Ron and Hermione had only been married for 4 years, but it is supposed to be six. I couldn't actually find the place I wrote that, but if anyone does find it, just know it's a typo!)_

**Chapter 9 – Since You've Been Gone**

"_And it only hurts when I'm breathing_

_My heart only breaks when it's beating_

_My dreams only die when I'm dreaming_

_So, I hold my breath--to forget."_

_- "It Only Hurts When I'm Breathing" by Shania Twain_

----

_The silence was becoming his best friend. He found it easier to handle than noise. For one thing, silence meant peace. For another thing, silence meant he was alone._

_He could vaguely hear noises outside his door but chose to ignore them. _

_His uncomfortable hospital bed had driven him to get up and stand near his window as he watched the sun begin to rise over the horizon, the first day this world would be without the terror of Voldemort looming over it. The lights the pierced the sky seemed so unfulfilling compared to what Harry could be feeling…should be feeling._

_Without warning, his door opened and shut quickly, bringing the noise in with it but chasing it out just a quickly. Harry had a guess of who it was and didn't bother to turn, just continued to lean on the windowsill and watch the sky._

"_Harry?"_

"_Hi, Gin," he said softly, without turning around._

_The door burst open again, startling both Harry and Ginny and he whirled around to see Ron glaring over at Ginny, a fresh bruise on his face. "Come on, Ginny." He grabbed her arm forcefully and she fought his grip for a moment before Harry finally had the nerve to speak._

"_Leave her be, Ron," he said quietly, looking thankfully at his best friend, knowing how protective both Ron and Hermione had been over him during the last few hours._

_Ron at once dropped his sister's arm and glanced up at Harry questioningly, but remained silent. Harry could see others outside the door trying to inconspicuously look in and see what was going on, but he kept his gaze on Ron._

"_It'll be fine," Harry spoke softly, reassuring Ron._

_Ron bit his bottom lip tensely for a moment before giving Harry a short nod and backing out of the door, closing it softly and leaving Harry and Ginny alone again._

_Ginny looked positively amazed as her graze fell back on Harry. Obviously she had been planning on fighting to stay in the room with Harry, though, by the bruise on Ron's face, Harry guessed she must have fought a bit already._

_They just stared at each other for several moments, neither quite knowing how or where to begin._

_Harry gazed over her body, mentally wincing at every scrape and cut he could see. His gaze rested on her bandaged hands._

_Flashes of the battle spring into his mind and he blinked several times to wipe them away._

_When he finally looked back up into her eyes, he saw them rapidly filling with tears._

_Without warning, she launched herself into him, throwing her arms around his neck and though she didn't sob, Harry felt her tears fall onto his neck as he tentatively wrapped his arms around her waist, allowing himself a moment to hold her._

_She was the first to pull back, but she didn't go very far. Harry's hands rested lightly on her waist as she looked up at him, taking his face in her hands._

"_Please say something…." Her voice was so quiet he almost couldn't hear her. "Anything…"_

"_What do you want me so say?" he hadn't said such a long sentence in a while…his voice sounded dead, even to his ears._

_Another tear fell down her cheek. Her face was so close to his. "Blast, Harry, it's not what I want!" she pleaded, her voice still a whisper. "None of this is what I wanted."_

"_But it's what happened," he answered, nodding his head a bit. "It's what had to happen."_

"_Yes, Harry," she said patiently. "But it's over now…it's over." More tears fell._

_He pulled out of her grasp, turning back towards the window and leaning on the ledge. He breathed out a long sigh. "Yes…it's over."_

_She didn't understand… he knew that. None of them really understood. He couldn't just explain it; there weren't words for that sort of thing._

"_Talk to me…please?" She pleaded from behind him. _

_He didn't say anything._

"_I said I'd wait, Harry." The abrupt change in topic made him turn back to her, but not move closer. "I promised I would be there for you when it was all over…well," she spread out her arms, "here I am. Talk to me. Yell at me. Hug me, kiss me…Merlin, Harry do something!"_

"_You still want me to kiss you?" he asked abruptly, stopping her._

_Her face softened and she nodded._

"_Why?" he asked, dead serious. "I'm a murderer."_

_Her reaction wasn't at all what he expected, quite the opposite in fact. She took two steps forward, brought her hand up and smacked him across the face. Hard._

"_Don't you ever say that again, Harry Potter." Both her voice and her pointing hand shook as she spoke. "Don't you dare."_

_He looked at her with surprise, resisting the urge to hold his throbbing cheek. If he was truthful, he knew that was exactly how she would react. She seemed to be the only one who had no qualms about putting his boy-who-lived arse in its place. He loved that about her. It was a refreshing change._

_Neither of them spoke, but Ginny finally dropped her hand and, huffing, reached down, taking his hand and leading him over to his bed, sitting him down and going back into the small bathroom that connected with the private room. He didn't have time to consider standing back up before she walked back into the room holding a wet towel. As she sat next to him and placed it on his throbbing cheek, he could feel the ice she had wrapped in it and his cheek started to feel considerably better. She held it on his face for a few seconds before he reached up with his own hand and covered hers, holding it on himself._

"_Thanks."_

_She nodded curtly, pulling her hand back and looking away from him again, starting to twiddle her fingers._

"_I can't believe you said that," she said in disbelief, her gaze straying to the window he had been standing at._

"_I'm sorry." He meant it, too. It was an idiotic thing for him to say, especially after all that the both of them had been through, but he couldn't get the idea out of his head. It was probably what was bugging him the most._

"_You should be," she scolded, finally looking back at him._

"_Thanks," he said again after the silence hung for a few more seconds._

_She smirked. "You already said that."_

"_No, I meant thanks for…well, being you. For still treating me like Harry and not 'the chosen one'." He glanced back at his closed door. "They seem to think I'm made of glass at the moment, afraid to say anything to upset me."_

_Ginny smiled out of the corner of her mouth. "Lucky I know you better, huh?"_

"_Yeah…" he said distractedly, his gaze sweeping across his small private room, finally landing on Ginny again. "You do know me better."_

_He saw a bit of blush rise to her cheeks but she fought it back with a raised, curious eyebrow. "Yeah?"_

_He broke her gaze, reaching down and taking her hand in his before looking back up at her again. "I'm going away, Gin." _

_She blanched. "What?"_

"_To America."_

_Confusion etched the lines of her face. "Whatever for?"_

_He looked down, unable to face the disappointment in her eyes. "I've got to get away for a while. Remus said they have a brilliant training program set up over there for Aurors. I'd travel all over." His eyes found hers again and he managed a smile. "In a year or two I could even go to Washington DC, the capital."_

"_Is that where you want to be?" she hesitated and he could see her holding back her bitter comments._

"_I can't just stay here, Gin. Please try to understand-"_

"_No, Harry!" She jerked up, glaring down at him. "I can't _try_ to understand because I _don't_ understand at all! What in the world would make you want to leave your friends and family?"_

"_Family?" he scoffed at her. "What family?"_

_She looked tempted to slap him again. "Damn you, Harry," she gritted her teeth._

_He stood, setting down the towel covered ice and laying his hands on her shoulders. "I know you wanted it to just be the same…I wanted that too…Merlin," he shook his head, "I wanted that so bad, even though I knew it wasn't going to happen." She didn't look at him so he reached down, bringing her chin up to look at him. "Listen. I love you. I do."_

_The tear now fell down his cheek as he realized what he was about to do._

"_I love you too," she mumbled, not breaking eye contact._

"_But this isn't right now….for either of us." Her eyes went wide with fear and distress and a hint of anger._

"_I've already had this lecture from you, Harry," she said through gritted teeth. _

_He shook his head. "No, no, this is so different…gods, Ginny," he pulled her into an unexpected hug. "I need you right now….just you…please, please understand."_

_Merlin, he hope she understood…the idea of a romantic relationship right now wasn't something he could handle, but loosing Ginny's friendship looked a million times worse._

_Thankfully, her arms finally rose up, holding him back. "I'll always be your friend, Harry."_

_Tears of relief ran down his face and he finally let her go. They both pulled back, gazing over each other one more time._

"_Promise me one thing," she said softly._

"_Yeah?"_

_She reached up, grabbing his chin. He looked apprehensive._

"_Write me every day."_

_A grin slowly formed on his face, splitting it in two as they looked at each other one last time. He reached up, kissing her gently on the forehead. "Of course."_

_When Ginny exited the room a few minutes later, Harry heard her softly tell the others that he was sleeping and wanted them to go home and rest. As the voices died away, Harry breathed a sigh of relief, but couldn't stop his heart from aching as he heard Ginny's footsteps fade softly down the hallway._

----

"_What are you going to do_?" the voice on the TV asked.

Ginny heard Hermione sniff a little and wordlessly passed the bowl of popcorn to her across the couch. Her gaze was locked on the television in front of them playing the muggle movie "Sleepless in Seattle", one of the few romantic movies that Ginny owned due to the fact that she didn't cry during it. Hermione, so far, hadn't been doing very well in that department.

"_Well, I'm gonna get out of bed every morning... breathe in and out all day long. Then, after a while I won't have to remind myself to get out of bed every morning and breathe in and out... and, then after a while, I won't have to think about how I had it great and perfect for a while_."

Without warning, Hermione burst into sobs again, a combination of hormones, Ron, Harry and the heart wrenching movie that only girls could really understand. Ginny quickly scooted over next to her sister-in-law and gathered her in a tight hug, mentally cursing Ron again and, for good measure, Harry as well.

The movie was drowned out by Hermione's sobs and tears as she went through tissue after tissue, neither of the young women speaking. Finally, Ginny turned from the TV as Hermione spoke.

"You…you know what the worst part of this is?" She sniffed.

Ginny just shook her head slightly, tucking a strand of Hermione's wild hair behind her ear.

"To think that this is hurting me more than it's hurting him…" she was staring off into space, her bottom lip quivering and her eyes rapidly filling up with more tears.

"I seriously doubt that, Hermione," Ginny reassured her, rubbing her back soothingly. "Ron worships the ground you walk on. There's no way this isn't hurting him just as must, if not more, than you. Besides," she let herself smirk, "I bet Harry's laying it on him thick anyway."

Hermione cracked a smile and chuckled a bit. "Yeah, Harry…"

Ginny glanced over to her clock on the wall and saw that it was past two in the morning. "Look, Hermione, it's getting late, I'll go set up the bed in the guest room."

"Oh no," Hermione said quickly as Ginny began to stand, "no, you don't need to do that," She sniffed again, looking away.

Ginny just rolled her eyes, grabbing the remote to the TV and flicking it off as she grabbed Hermione and started leading her up the stairs. "As long as it's my halfwit brother who's being an arsehole, I insist."

----

Light rarely woke Harry up. He had learned to sleep through worse than that during his days at Hogwarts. But for some reason the beams of light that streamed through his open window landed right on his eyelids and gradually jolted him out of an uncomfortably tense sleep.

He sat up, realizing that he was still in his clothes from the day before which brought back all the memories of what exactly had occurred in the few hours where his life had basically been gambled away.

As he rubbed the last remains of sleep out of his eyes and headed for the shower, a nagging thought in the back of his mind kept telling him that he had forgotten something.

It hit him like a freezing curse and he rattled off a few choice swear words before grabbing a fresh cloak and racing down the stairs.

Ginny Weasley's temper wasn't the best thing to face at seven o'clock in the morning.

----

The incessant knocking drummed at Ginny's head like a hammer and she tried to move faster down the stairs, but just managed to trip up a bit and slide down the last few steps on her bum.

"Ow…" she winced, scrambling up as quick as she could. "Alright! Alright I'm coming!" she yelled to the person who was banging on her front door.

She rubbed her sleepy eyes before finally reaching the door and flinging it open. Only after she saw who it was did she regret the effort she put into it.

"Oh. It's you." She managed to sound sarcastic even this early in the morning. Vaguely she heard Hermione start descending the stairs behind her, but she kept her annoyed gaze on the man outside her house.

"Ginny, look, I'm so sorry-"

"Harry? Harry!"

He was tacked a moment later by a messy haired Hermione Granger who was dressed in an oversized t-shirt to cover her large belly and a pair of Ginny's old sweatpants.

Ginny smirked at Harry's surprised expression as he gingerly patted Hermione on the back.

"Are you alright? Is Ron alright? You've seen him, haven't you?" Hermione blubbered, finally releasing Harry from her death grip and looking up at him anxiously.

Harry looked hesitant and Ginny saw his gaze flicker over to her several times before he finally answered Hermione.

"Yes, I've seen him. We talked for a bit yesterday." He hesitated and coughed. "He got a bit, er, angry with me and stormed out. I don't know where he went.

The words sent Hermione into a crying fit again and Ginny watched passively as Harry reached out and held her comfortingly. She looked at him curiously, knowing that he wasn't telling the whole truth. It was quite obvious he was lying, but Hermione seemed too distraught to notice.

A bit of Ginny's anger cooled as she realized that the reason Harry hadn't shown up last night was due to Ron's visit. But if Ron had stormed out after a fight, what had Harry been doing the rest of the night? And why hadn't he flooed her? More importantly, where had he gone when Hermione tried to go visit him at his house?

Hermione's sobs started to die down and she started hiccupping.

"Merlin," she sniffed. "I'm a bloody mess." She made to pull out of Harry's grasp, but he held tight.

"Take it easy, Hermione," he said softly, leading her over to Ginny's family room and sitting her in the nearest armchair. When she was comfortable, he stayed by her side and let her grip his hand as she softly cried.

Over her quieting tears, Harry turned back to Ginny.

"I really am sorry, Gin," he said softly. "I should have flooed."

"Yes," Ginny said shortly, wishing now that she had put on a robe over her thin nightclothes, "you should have."

They stared at each other for a few silent moments, both unwilling to take the conversation much farther, especially with an obviously distressed Hermione sitting in the room with them.

Finally, Ginny huffed out a sigh and came around to Hermione's other side, laying a hand gently on her shoulder. "Let's get you back to bed, Hermione."

Both she and Harry were surprised as Hermione made no complaint, merely nodded and allowed Ginny to lead her back up the stairs.

"I'll be right back," she called over her shoulder to Harry as he stood stiffly in the same spot.

He didn't reply, so she focused on Hermione for the next few minutes, making sure she was comfortable in her guest bed before closing the curtains in the room and being sure to shut the door as she left the room, Hermione's quiet sobs already died down to a restless breathing as she drifted to sleep.

As she descended the stairs she stopped short at seeing Harry gazing at the pictures that decorated her walls and small side tables. She watched as his eyes stopped on a picture of her and him from Hogwarts, lounging by the lake on a nice spring day. For some reason, blush sprang to her cheeks and she cleared her throat, making him straighten up quickly, looking around at her with an impassive face.

"Is she alright?"

"I think so." Ginny descended the last few steps slowly. "Those hormones really do something to her, huh?"

This earned a chuckle from him and he smiled at her. "I've heard enough about them from Ron, but to experience it first hand," he shivered playfully, "I don't want to be around when she gets mad."

She laughed this time and was pleased to see that he enjoyed the sound.

"Speaking of Ron," she thought suddenly, "you really don't know where he went?"

Harry just shrugged, holding both his hands behind his back. "He got pretty pissed at me. I wasn't able to follow him."

"Why not?" She raised a suspicious eyebrow.

She swore she saw a bit of blush creep onto his cheeks, but he merely gave her a knowing look. "Because I'm in idiot."

"Glad you finally noticed," she couldn't help but say, though she knew the words were too harsh.

"Look, Ginny, I just wanted to come and say I'm sorry," he said apologetically, brushing off her rude comment. "Last night…you have to believe that last night I would have greatly preferred going to a concert with you than what I did end up doing."

"Yes? And just what was it you ended up doing?"

It was the first time he hesitated in replying. It was only for a moment, but Ginny noticed it.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"Try me," she said with a challenging look.

"Look, the point is, if I had any time at all to floo and tell you I would have but I didn't!" He seemed to be getting a little annoyed at her insistence, but she kept it up. Did this boy know anything about apologizing? She snorted. No, not likely. She should know, after all. She's the one who dated him.

"I'm not your mother, Harry. I'm not your babysitter, or your girlfriend, you don't have to explain yourself to me." She spoke in an agitated voice, walking over to clear off the couch of the sweets and drinks that she and Hermione had been consuming the night before.

She didn't realize he had come around behind her until his hand reached down, grabbing her wrist and she turned suddenly to come face to face with a very serious looking Harry Potter.

"I want you to trust me, Gin. Please."

He had a pleading but determined look in his eyes as he stared at her and she felt the blush rising to her cheeks as she realized how close their faces were. Her other hand loosened its grip on the butterbeer bottle she had been holding as she felt a shiver run through her.

"I do trust you," she said in a small voice, not daring to pull away.

He didn't seem to know how to reply just continued to hold her gaze, his face impassive but his eyes continuing to bore into hers with a gaze she couldn't define.

She didn't know which of them started moving first, but their faces seemed to slowly inch towards one another.

She licked her lips.

She could feel his breath on her face.

She felt her lips just barely touch his when they jumped apart, a voice sounding from the fireplace next to them.

"Ginny?" Edwards' accusing and harsh voice snapped her neck towards his head floating in the flames. She took in his amazed and angry face for a second before turning quickly back to where Harry had been only seconds before, but now no one was there, and the sounds of the front door slamming shut drowned out Edwards enraged shouts behind her.

----

_A/N: Thanks to everyone who has been reviewing! I love you all!_


	10. Share the Silence

_A/N: I'm SO sorry this took me so long to get out. Most of my excuse has to do with school (it's almost over, three more days!) but I also couldn't seem to get this chapter just right. I still don't like it very much, but hopefully the next chapter will make up for it!_

**Chapter 10 – Share the Silence**

"_Times of joy and times of sorrow  
We will always see it through  
We can face it together  
The way old friends do."_

_- "The Way Old Friends Do" by ABBA_

---

"_I'm coming!" Ginny shouted towards the door once again, becoming annoyed. She turned quickly back to the essay she was in the middle of writing, but just realized she had lost her train of thought, her quill posed about a half finished sentence._

_There was a louder knock on the door._

_Frustrated, Ginny threw the quill down and hurried over to the door, throwing an annoyed look up the stairs where she knew Ron was ignoring the door and probably in the middle of snogging Hermione._

_Sometimes she really wanted to move out of her the Burrow. If she could just get out of this internship and get a new job, she might just be able to afford to._

_Her hand reached the doorknob and she flung open the door, not bothering to hide her annoyed look._

"_What in the bloody he-"_

_Her words stuck in her throat as she gazed at the man in front of her, not daring to move or blink, for fear he would disappear._

"_H-Harry?" she stuttered, wondering if her lack of sleep the past few days was catching up with her._

_He just managed a lopsided smile at her and set down the small pack he was carrying, his eyes full of relief, joy and remembrance. Behind all that, however, she saw his shoulders slightly sagging, the shadows under his eyes just a bit darker and his smile not as wide as it used to be._

"_Ginny."_

_He surprised both of them by stepping forward and gathering her into a tight hug. _

_Tears came to Ginny's eyes as she felt Harry's arms wrap around her and she cried a few tears of joy as her own arms reached around his back and held back, just as strong._

_It had been a long three years, but he was home._

----

Harry stayed in the shadow of the stands, not wanting to bee seen as he watched the players fly laps and exercises in the air before him. The Cannons had definitely improved over the years, especially since Ron had been made captain. His natural strategy skills (from all those years playing chess, of course) made him one of the best player captains in the profession today.

His eyes found the redhead high above the others, watching casually but alert, one hand on his broom for balance, the other hanging loosely to the side.

The large clock on the west side of the stadium chimed five o'clock, signaling the end of practice, and Ron motioned for everyone to land.

The team began to head to the locker room, smiles on most of their faces as they talked about the day's practice and the upcoming game. But Harry's attention was still focused on Ron who, instead of following his team, stayed out on the field, watching them walk in, an indefinable expression on his face.

Taking a chance, Harry removed himself from the shadows and began walking towards his best friend.

Ron made mo move that he saw him coming, but Harry knew that he could see him out of the corner of his eye.

Feeling awkward, Harry stuck his hands in his pockets, stopping a few feet away from Ron and looking at him apologetically.

"I thought I'd find you here," he said carefully. Ron still hadn't looked at him.

"I don't miss a practice," Ron stated, matter-of-factly.

"Yeah, I know."

They were silent for a few minutes and Harry didn't dare speak until Ron finally turned to look at him.

"Your team looks like they're in good shape," he said carefully. "Primed for a win on Saturday."

Ron's gaze shifted back to the locker room doors his team had disappeared through. "Why shouldn't they be?" He shot a harshly accusing look at Harry and hoisted his broom on his shoulder, beginning to walk towards the locker rooms himself.

Harry stood still for a moment before deciding to follow. After many years of being Ron's friend, he knew getting his trust back wasn't going to be an easy thing.

"Well, you're speaking to me. I suppose that's a step up," Harry began as he caught up to his friend.

Ron scoffed. "We're not in fourth year anymore."

"Damn right we're not," Harry agreed, stepping so that he blocked Ron's path and the redhead was forced to stop. "So what's up your arse making you believe I would do that to you?"

Scowling up at him, Ron pushed Harry out of the way before continuing his track. "I don't need this right now."

"No," Harry called out to him, deciding not to follow anymore. "What you need is your wife, just as much as she needs you."

Thankfully, that was able to stop Ron in his tracks. His back still turned to Harry, Ron hung his head just a bit.

"You've seen her? She's okay?" His voice was surprisingly timid.

"I don't know if Ginny would call her 'okay' since she's the one having to deal with the hormones, but I wouldn't call her 'okay' since she's been crying her eyes out every minute she's not asleep."

Harry let the words sink in for a moment.

"Whatever the hell you think you're doing staying away from her for so long…it's a dumb idea, mate."

Ron's temper flared up again and he whirled around, glaring at Harry. "Listen, _mate_," he spat out the word, "don't tell me how to live my life. You are not _qualified_."

And without another word or backward glance, Ron disappeared into the locker room.

----

Harry knocked again, a little harder this time, hoping Ginny would hear.

He had thought about the possibility of her not answering because of the small "moment" they had shared earlier that morning.

He, on the other hand, was hoping they would never bring it up again. That crisis on top of the Ron/Hermione angst that was coursing through his life would not be a good combination. Besides, now was not the time to get involved with another women, especially because he might end up being re-engaged to his ex-fiancé by Saturday.

Finally getting fed up, he reached down, opening the door himself and cautiously entering the quiet house.

"Harry?"

He glanced towards the stairs, seeing a sleepy Hermione walking down them, dried tear marks all down her face as she looked at him curiously.

"Hey Hermione," he said with a comforting smile, walking towards her and gathering her into a hug as she reached the bottom stair. "How are you holding up?"

"Alright," she said unconvincingly.

They pulled apart and Harry swept some hair out of her face, trying to smile. "Since when do you get to sleep all day?"

Hermione laughed a bit and Harry was relieved to see that she wasn't crying anymore. "Since I'm pregnant, and don't you forget it!" She poked him lightly in the stomach, making him double over a bit, and started leading him towards the kitchen.

"Have you had dinner?" she asked, starting to rummage around in Ginny's fridge.

"I'm not hungry," Harry said, waving her question away and sitting down at the bar stools by the counter. "Where's Ginny?"

Hermione frowned slightly as she turned back to Harry, holding a cup of yogurt in one hand and going to find a spoon. "I'm not sure exactly. I woke up to some yelling a few hours ago. When I went downstairs, Edward was storming out the door and Ginny looked ready to kill. She looked at me for a second before mumbling something about needing fresh air and then disappeared out the door." Finding a spoon, she went around to the other side of the counter and began to eat the yogurt, throwing Harry a small look.

"What was that for?" Harry questioned.

"What?"

"That look!"

"What look?"

Harry ran a hand through his hair, frustrated. "Never mind."

But when he looked up again, Hermione was scrutinizing him carefully.

"What!" he said, exasperated.

"Whatever happened with you and Ginny?" said asked suddenly, catching Harry off guard.

He turned away from her gaze, rubbing at a spot on the counter. "What are you talking about?"

"After the war," Hermione pressed. "In St. Mungo's? There was something different about you two after you had whatever conversation it is that you had. It was like you broke up…but you didn't. Then you disappear to the other side of the world and Ginny doesn't bat an eye. It's like you two didn't love each other anymore."

"Is that right?" Harry didn't know whether to scowl or grin at that comment. He settled for using his fingernail to try to get the spot off of the counter.

"Well neither of you ever talked to anyone about it. Even when you came back, you and Ginny just acted like best friends. Ron wanted to find an excuse to beat you up for breaking her heart, but she never seemed to cry about it."

She fell silent and Harry hoped she had dropped it, but suddenly she was sitting beside him and he felt her gaze on his face.

"Are you going to just let me keep making my own assumptions, or are you going to tell me what happened?"

He turned to glance at her. "I saw Ron today."

A flicker of something passed across her face, but it disappeared quickly. "Don't try to change the subject, Harry, I'm sick of crying."

"Well, who says my story is going to make you happy?"

She breathed out a huff and turned back to her yogurt. "You're as impossible as Ron."

"He misses you too."

She stopped, her spoon in her mouth, frozen in the action, just as Ron had been only an hour to so ago when Harry had mentioned Hermione to him.

She finally lowered the spoon, swallowing once before starting to scrape away at the practically empty yogurt cup.

"Have you ever been in love, Harry?"

"Yes," he said without hesitation.

She turned to him inquisitively. "How many times?"

He hesitated just slightly on that question, not quite knowing where she was going with this. "Once."

She cocked her head to the side a bit. "Were you in love with Ginny?"

"No."

This answer seemed to shock her slightly and she turned away, embarrassed.

"I'm still in love with her."

This brought an even bigger shock as Hermione's hands slipped and both spoon and cup clattered to the counter. Harry smiled a bit behind his hand, even though he had been surprised with his own answer as well.

"Does she know?" Hermione finally found the nerve to ask.

Harry shrugged. "We don't bring it up. Even if I want to be more than friends with her again, I wouldn't risk it."

"Why not? She might be wanting the exact same thing."

Harry grimaced. "I never know anymore. And until I know, I really don't want to ruin our friendship."

"Screw friendship, Harry!" Hermione cried, suddenly becoming very fierce. "You two could have been married by now."

Harry's eyes went wide at the statement and he turned a bit red. "Er, no. It's really not that simple, Hermione."

She opened her mouth to reply, but he cut her off. "Besides, we were talking about you and Ron." He frowned at her. "Don't you think it's time you went back home? He might be there."

Hermione scowled at the change of subject. "I don't think I can handle seeing him just yet."

"Why ever not?"

She sighed, standing up and taking her cup to the trash and her spoon to the sink. "Now that I've gotten over the initial shock of just being away from him for so long…" she slouched down on a chair at the table. "I'm mad again."

Harry wanted to roll his eyes, but resisted the urge. He kept reminding himself that Hermione was pregnant. "You were mad before, right?"

"Yes," she admitted carefully. "I'm not as mad now…but I just can't." Her eyes shut tight and she took a sharp breath. "How could he do that? Really? Did he just have no sense at all? Didn't he realize what he was doing?"

"Hermione," Harry said comfortingly, standing up to go join her by the table. "Ron, is Ron." He slung an arm around her shoulders. "He's not going to be perfect like you."

She sniffed and Harry saw that a few tears were leaking out of her eyes again. "Oh...I'm not perfect, Harry."

He smiled, glad she had said just those words and waited for their impact to sink in.

When it finally did, he felt her stiffen a bit under his embrace. "No…no, I'm defiantly not perfect. Especially if I can make a mistake like this."

She straightened up a bit and looked at Harry ruefully. "You've probably been waiting for me to admit that since our first year at Hogwarts, haven't you?"

"Of course not. I knew it the moment you lied to Professor McGonagall about the troll."

His chuckled were interrupted by her smacking him on the arm.

----

Of all the brilliant moments to be smashed, Ginny Weasley knew this was at least one of the top ten, but yet she had no energy to go find a pub.

Wandering the darkening neighborhoods around her house, Ginny would rather have been drunk earlier that day. If she could just forget what happened then she would be having no problems now.

They had been about to kiss…had kissed. She admitted it to herself, even if she didn't know which one it was.

The thing that was bugging her the most was what would have happened if Edward hadn't chosen that moment to floo her.

The answers she had come up with only made her despise Edward even more.

She turned into a small park where only a few children and parents were left playing as she sun continued to set. The swings were unoccupied so she plopped herself in the nearest one and slowly pumped her legs, enjoying the silence that came as the last few stragglers on the playground left for home.

It let her think better.

It wasn't that she had been pining after Harry all these years, far from it. She had been determined to get on with her life as soon as he left for America. She had done alright, she expected, graduating, getting an internship, applying to the Auror Academy…

She grimaced. She did not want to be reminded of that.

Two times she had applied already and was rejected for various reasons between being unqualified the first time to the academy being overcrowded the second time and she had been pushed to the bottom of the pile.

Not this time, though. Ginny was going to prove to herself and to the world that she would not be stuck behind a desk her whole life. Anyone who knew her knew that would never make her happy.

Harry had been the first to get her interested in the job. He knew her skill and encouraged her immensely during the first few years after he returned from England. It was just one more part of her life she linked with Harry.

What part _didn't_ she link with Harry?

Her thoughts turned back to the green-eyed, bespeckled boy who had captured her fancy so. What exactly had happened that had led them both to this moment. A teenage romance, snuffed out by the reality of the real world that led them to becoming best friends?

He was her best friend. There was no question there. Even before Edward, Harry was the first person she turned to in times of trial and in times of joy.

It was just like they were dating…only they weren't.

_Oh, Merlin, my head is starting to hurt…_

She jumped off the swing and began waking back towards her house, the street lights flickering on as the last of the light from the sun dimmed into the horizon.

As she turned the corner and spotted her house, she was surprised to see a few lights on inside. She figured Hermione would have gone back to bed by now. And Riley was working till midnight. Who was there?

Cautiously, she walked through the front door, surprised to see Harry sitting comfortably in her living room, a book in one hand and an apple in the other.

He glanced up at she entered and smiled.

She couldn't help it.

Looking over at her best friend, she smiled back.

----

_A/N: Don't worry, they're going to talk! I promise! That's the next chapter. Just you wait and see the sparks fly…Thanks again to all my reviews for sticking with me! That was a really long wait, I'm terribly sorry! I'll try not to do it again!_


	11. Am I Too Far Gone?

**Chapter 11 – Am I Too Far Gone?**

"_You don't need to prove a thing to me  
Just give me faith make me believe_

_You might try savin' yourself  
I'm gonna save me."_

_- "Save Me" by Dave Matthews_

_----_

"_You're joking…aren't you?"_

"_Look out the window, Potter. Now is not the time for jokes."_

"_Damn right it's not! Go back to the house, Draco! I don't have time for you right now!"_

_Draco stepped forward, looking as if he wanted to take a swing at Harry, but Remus stepped forward between them._

"_We don't have time for any of this right now, but if Draco wants to do it, I don't see what you're arguing for, Harry."_

_Harry looked flabbergasted up at Remus, his eyes widening. "You believe him?"_

"_It's an unbreakable vow," Remus stressed. "There is no believing or not believing. It's unbreakable."_

"_Oh, thanks for that lesson, Remus-"_

"_Listen Potter, I don't have time to deal with your hero complex shite right now," Draco interjected, pointing an accusing finger at Harry. "My father is out there, right now, murdering people while we're up here arguing the specifications of a vow. If you're so worried, have your godfather here perform it, I could care less. Just give me my bloody wand back!"_

_Both Harry and Remus were looking at Draco with wide, surprised eyes. The muffled noises of the battles outside on the Hogwarts grounds seemed to grow louder as the three men stared at one another._

"_Fine." Harry thrust his hand towards Draco, a determined look on his face._

_Draco didn't hesitate at all before laying his hand on top of Harry's._

_Remus stepped around so that he was standing in between them, his wand in his hand, but still lowered towards the ground as he looked uncertainly at the two younger wizards._

"_Now, you both are sure about this?"_

"_I've got nothing to loose," Harry snapped, still glaring at Draco._

_Draco's mouth twitched at Harry's words but he remained cool and collected. "Neither do I."_

_Slowly, Remus raised his wand so that it was pointing at their joined hands._

_Harry took a deep breath, choosing his words carefully._

"_Do you swear to remain true to the Order of the Phoenix throughout this war?"_

"_I do."_

_A band of flame shot from Remus' wand, encircling their clasped hands._

"_And do you swear to use your talents and skills only for the light side and never again to serve the powers of darkness?"_

"_I do."_

_A second band entwined in the first, the room growing brighter than before. _

"_And do you swear to never betray me, lie to me or deceive me ever again?"_

"_I do."_

_The lack of hesitation in Draco's voice was more surprising to Harry than the third band of fire that shot from Remus' wand, exploding the room in a brilliant flash of light._

----

Ginny closed the door quietly behind her, aware of Hermione sleeping upstairs, and slowly hung her cloak on a peg by the door, trying her best not to notice Harry's eyes boring into the back of her head.

Turning back around, his gaze was still on her, looking more curious by the moment.

"Where have you been?" he asked her softly, finally setting down his apple and closing his book.

He didn't deserve an answer. It was her house, after all. He had no right to know anything she was doing. But for some reason…she wanted him to know.

"Just out walking," she went and sat down on the couch across from him, letting out a sigh, "trying to clear my mind." Her head fell into her hands and she bit her bottom lip. "It's been a long day."

"Look, Gin-"

She held up a quick hand, looking up at him. "Don't. Don't start this now. I don't want to talk about it." Standing up quickly, she started to make good on her statement and head to the stairs, but once again, he caught her arm and stopped her. She knew better than to turn around this time.

"Maybe you don't want to…" He paused and she heard him take a shuddering breath. "But maybe we both _need_ to."

Ginny tugged softly against his hold and he let her go immediately, but she didn't turn around. "I've done this too many times, Harry. I've had too many of these 'talks' with you." She turned to glare at him. "And frankly I don't think I can take another one."

He looked concerned for a moment, but he didn't move, he just continued to stare at her.

"What if I promised this was the last one?"

She shook her head, tears gathering in her eyes, despite how she tried to fight them. "You think it's that easy?" She shook her head, looking at him with sorrow, for herself and for him. "It's too complicated now. One little kiss isn't going to change ten years of mistakes."

"Wait," he held out his hands, stopping her from turning away again, "ten years of mistakes? Merlin, Ginny, you think it was all a mistake? The last ten years haven't meant anything to you?"

She hesitated for the first time, noticing the hurt in his eyes…as well as the tears.

"You're my best friend, Ginny. Not Ron. Not Hermione. These last ten years have had their hard times, sure, but I wouldn't trade your friendship for any of that."

"That's right, Harry, friendship. That's all it is and that's all it's ever going to be." Oh, how she hated herself for saying those words! He looked so hurt…

His arms dropped from her sides and he looked pensively at her. "Hermione finally asked me tonight." Ginny frowned, confused at what he was talking about. "She asked me what happened that night…at St. Mungo's."

Ginny couldn't think to hide the shock from her face. She never expected any of their friends to bring up that day. The whole thing had been so awkward and depressing for both of them that their friends never even acted like they noticed anything. But they must have noticed something. Two people don't just go out for two years and then suddenly become best friends with no physical contact at all.

She swallowed. "What did you tell her?"

He shrugged, unconcerned. "Nothing, actually. I was able to change the conversation pretty quickly…" He looked curiously at her. "The truth is…I'm not really sure what _did_ happen anymore."

"Is that so?" Ginny raised an eyebrow at him. "Allow me to refresh your memory." She walked over towards the stairs. As she stepped up the first one, she turned back around to see him looking curiously over at her. "You broke up with me."

And she left him standing there, alone in her family room. When she reached the top of the stairs, she stayed still and silent, just out of sight, until she finally heard him turn off the lights and the front door opened and shut.

----

Wednesday was already dawning to be a terrible day.

Ginny heard Riley's incessant cheerfulness ringing through the house and glanced at the clock to see that it was only nine in the morning.

For too early to be getting up.

Unfortunately, she had promised Hermione that she would go shopping with her today, mostly to get her mind off of the Ron problem, but also because, being pregnant, Hermione never liked how she looked in her clothes.

One quick shower and a flurry of clothes later, Ginny made it to the kitchen where Hermione was sitting at the table, chatting merrily with Riley who was finishing up breakfast: hotcakes and sausage.

_Well,_ Ginny thought, sitting down to the delicious smelling meal and smiling over at an obviously more cheerful Hermione, _maybe this day won't be so bad after all._

----

"You're being a right foul git, you know that?" Harry slammed a hand into the contraption in front of him, resorting to the last means of action he could take, especially when he wasn't allowed to use magic.

"It's not going to talk back to you, Harry," Remus said calmly, sitting next to him in front of a separate computer and acting more like a muggle than Harry.

Glancing over at him, perplexed at the thought, Harry asked, "How is it that you're so good at this?"

"You forget my mother was muggle," Remus reminded him, speaking softer. "It's really not that difficult. Didn't the Dursley's have a computer?"

Harry looked over at him. "You think they let me come within 20 feet of it?" he asked, dryly.

"Point," Remus conceded, going back to his own computer.

Harry heaved a frustrated sigh and turned back to his screen, seeing that his hit hadn't done a single thing other than knock the monitor sideways a bit. He looked around at the other visitors to the public library and felt even more embarrassed as he straightened it out and dropped his voice as he spoke to Remus.

"Where did you put Draco?"

"In the safe house at Brighton," Remus sighed, his exhaustion creeping through.

"And this is helping him, how?" Harry continued, finally getting his mouse to work as he typed in another keyword to search for.

"I'm trying to locate one of my dad's old friends," Remus replied, absentmindedly. "I think I've almost got it. Just act busy for a few more minutes then we'll get out of here."

"What's he going to do to help us?"

"He's one of the best attorney's I know, both muggle and wizard. If we're hoping to stop this thing before it gets to the Wizgamot, we're going to need his help."

"Why go through the muggle world? Wizarding Findbooks are more organized than this internet shite."

"We can't risk the floo getting intercepted and someone finding out that we know where Draco is. Right now it's technically against the law to be helping him."

"Right now?"

Remus pressed a key down in triumph and smiled up at Harry. "Hopefully within a day or two this'll all be just a bad dream."

Harry grinned, standing up and grabbing his coat off the back of his chair as Remus retrieved the papers he printed. "A nightmare for him, maybe. This week's not going to be as lucky for me I'm afraid."

"Trouble on the Weasley front?" Remus guessed, holding the door open for them as they stepped back onto the busy muggle street. "Which one, Ron or Ginny?"

Harry hissed through his teeth. "Take your pick. Even add in Hermione, she's a Weasley too." Remus didn't say anything, obviously expecting Harry to expand on his own. Harry was reluctant to at first, but then decided that if he was going to tell anyone, Remus would be at the top of his list. "Ron thinks I'm helping Emily blackmail him when she's actually blackmailing both of us all by herself, Hermione keeps asking me what's going on between me and Ginny, and Ginny and I almost kissed yesterday and ended up having a very…abrupt conversation."

Remus remained silent for a moment until they reached the ministry building and stepped in the phone booth.

"Seems to me that's a personal problem, mate," Remus said, half serious, half joking.

Harry wanted to slug him, but settled for saying his name wrong into the phone and making him wear a badge around that said "Romulus Snape" for the rest of the day.

----

"Seems cozy," Harry offered, setting down the bag of food as Draco sent him a loathing look.

"Sometimes I think you guys set me up for these types of things cause you like to see me locked in a house."

"Careful," Harry warned, taking out the Chinese food he brought for both of them, "I am in charge of your food supply for the next couple of days, not to mention your life as you know it."

In typical Draco fashion, he didn't honor the threat with a reply, just grabbed one of the containers and dropped onto a nearby couch, starting to eat without another word.

Harry chuckled at his friend, sitting in the armchair and grabbing his own food.

"You in the mood?" Harry asked between bites.

Draco stopped, mid-chew, and glanced slowly up at Harry. "For what?"

Harry sighed and leaned back. "I need advice."

Draco looked dramatically around the room, as if searching for something, and then looked back at Harry. "Do you see anything I can use as an excuse to get out of it?"

"No," Harry chuckled.

"Fine."

----

The fourth store began to get a little tedious for Ginny. As a girl who grew up with six older brothers, she had never understood the girlish notion that shopping was fun. More like it was a ridiculous waste of time.

Still, Hermione was enjoying herself.

As Hermione disappeared once more into the dressing room, Ginny wandered over to a scarf display, running her hands along the soft materials.

"You seem lost in thought."

She turned quickly, startled by the familiar voice.

"Merlin, Remus," she held a hand to her heart, "don't do that!"

Remus smiled apologetically. "I wasn't trying to be quiet. You really seemed lost in your own world."

Ginny smiled ruefully at him. "I see you've been talking to Harry."

"I never said that," Remus reminded her.

"It's obvious enough. Why else would you be in the women's section of this store?" Ginny gave him a knowing look.

Remus had the nerve to blush a bit. "Actually, I'm trying to find something for Tonks. It's our anniversary next week."

"Wow, and you're already thinking about it? I'm impressed," Ginny smirked.

"Well, I do what I can," Remus admitted. "But what about you? What brings you here? I never saw you as the shopping-for-no-reason type."

"Actually, I brought Hermione here. Just a way to get her out of the house and thinking about something other than Ron."

"Ah, yes. I did gather there was a situation there. Harry was quite upset about that as well."

"As well?"

Remus gave her a small smile. "As I'm sure you realize, his main concern was about you."

It was Ginny's turn to get a little pink. "We had a bit of a row last night," she admitted. Remus stayed silent, as he always did, waiting for her to elaborate. "I said some pretty awful things."

"I think he was more upset about the things you didn't say rather than the things you did say."

Ginny looked away, ashamed. Thankfully she was saved from any more awkward moments by Hermione appearing again, finally carrying the outfit she wanted.

"Oh, Remus! What are you doing here?" she asked, smiling happily at him.

"Just a little matrimonial shopping," Remus said, winking at Ginny. "But I've got to get back home before Tonks gets suspicious, so I'll talk to you both later."

But despite his abrupt departure, even as they walked back to the floo station to go back home, Ginny couldn't get his words out of her head.

----

"I never understood all that romance stuff," Draco admitted, leaning back after Harry finished his explanation of all his problems. "Seemed like a cheep way to get someone to look after you for the rest of your life."

"Well skip over that than," Harry suggested. "Besides, I'm not sure I would want advice on my love life from you."

"This Emily, chick…she was the one at the Weasley's wedding?"

"Yeah."

"She was hot."

"Yeah, thanks for that."

"Hey, just stating a point."

Harry downed the last of his butterbeer and rolled his eyes. "I take it you're just as confused about the situation as me."

"Right in one," Draco said with a wink, setting down his food and starting to put the trash into the bag. "But I do have one bit of advice."

"Oh yeah?"

"You'd better make sure Weasley plays like hell on Saturday. Your future may be riding on the outcome, but I bet a heck of a lot of money on the Cannons and I swear, if Lennon's trick doesn't kill him, I will."

Harry smirked, picking up the trash as he headed out the door. "I'll pass it onto Ron. Though, he might not take me seriously if I tell him it's from the white ferret."

Draco grabbed the back of Harry's shirt, stopping him in his tracks. "Call me that again, Potter, and you won't have to wait till Saturday to know how you're going to spend the rest of your days."

Harry shook him off easily, his grip wasn't that hard, and turned around in the doorway, facing Draco. "Consider me warned," he said with a soft smile, holding out his hand.

Draco still looked a little mad, but his expression softened a bit as he reached out and took Harry's hand, shaking it slowly.

"I'll come back sometime tomorrow. By then Remus should have gotten hold of this miracle worker of his."

"Yeah," Draco said absentmindedly.

"We'll have you out of here soon, Draco, don't worry."

Draco didn't look convinced, but he nodded. "I know you and Remus are trying your best, Harry. It's just sometimes…I just wish there were more to help."

Harry laid a caring hand on Draco's shoulder. "Maybe this'll be the event to turn the tide and you can stop hiding."

Pushing him away, Draco stepped back. "I highly doubt it. I've given up on the rest of the world trusting me."

Harry opened his mouth to say more, but Draco had already shut the door.


	12. Feels Like Forever

**Chapter 12 – Feels Like Forever**

"_We've seen our share of ups and downs  
Oh how quickly life can turn around  
In an instant."_

_- "My Sacrifice" by Creed_

----

"_Hey sweetheart," Ron leaned over the counter, planting a kiss on Hermione's lips. "How was your day?"_

_As he spoke, he took of his cloak, brushing the snow off and hanging it on a pin over by the doorway._

"_It was…interesting."_

_He turned back around to see Hermione had turned her back to him and was once again working on dinner, her wand waving over the various knives and pots as a sweet aroma filled the kitchen._

"_Interesting?" He walked up behind her with a smile, placing his arms around her waist from the back and leaning his chin on her shoulder. "How interesting?"_

_She seemed tense to have him this close and he frowned at the thought. Was he still in trouble for that fight two weeks ago? No…he racked his brain to see what else she could be upset about._

"_I left work early," she said simply, cutting up carrots with her wand and directing them to a pot._

_He kissed her neck and felt her shiver a bit. "How come?"_

"_I…I had to go to the healers."_

_Ron froze for a second, thinking she would immediately contradict the statement, but she didn't. "What?" He gently turned her around by her waist and looking at her seriously. There was a glistening tear in one of her eyes that she hastily tried to wipe away, but he reached up and grabbed her hand before she could. "Why did you have to go to the healers? Are you sick? What's wrong?"_

_A thousand and one scenarios flashed in his mind and he felt himself unconsciously holding her closer, his eyes becoming soft and caring as he saw her hesitation._

"_You'll be mad," she whispered, looking away from his eyes, tears beginning to well up in his eyes._

_He began to worry even more. Hermione never cried, about anything. She didn't cry during those sappy love movies, she didn't cry when they fought, she didn't even cry when he proposed to her. The last time he remembered her crying was at Dumbledore's funeral and that had been over ten years ago._

"_Hermione," he reached down, lifting up her chin so that she had to look at him. _

_She gazed at him, teary eyed for a few moments before she reached down, grabbing his hand that was still around her waist and moving it to rest on her belly._

"_Ron…I'm going to have a baby."_

_His eyes widened as his hand on her stomach suddenly felt very warm. His hand under her chin moved up her face slowly, wiping away the tears that had fallen down her cheeks and she dropped her gaze from him again, more and more tears falling._

"_We hadn't planned on it, I know," she murmured. "It's awful timing with my firm just opening up and your championship game coming in just a few months and we weren't planning on having kids for another year-"_

"_A baby?" he whispered, cutting off her words. _

_She looked up at him suddenly and he hoped his face could convey every feeling of joy, happiness, excitement and love that he was feeling at that moment. It must have dome something, for he felt her relax a bit in his arms and she nodded, hesitatingly._

"_Boy or girl?" he asked breathlessly._

"_I…I didn't find out." She sniffed, managing a weak smile that barely touched Ron's ecstatic glow that emanated from his face. "I kind of wanted it to be a surprise."_

_He nodded. "So do I."_

_Finally he swept her up into his arms, both of them beginning to cry and laugh at the same time, Ron's words becoming garbled as he tried to speak._

"_Oh, Hermione this is so…you have no idea how much this means…" He set her down, looking her square in the eye. "I love you."_

_She smiled through watery eyes. "And here I thought you were going to be mad."_

_He shook his head. "Never."_

_And he sealed his promise with a searing kiss._

----

Two more days.

Two more days till his fate would be decided.

Two more days.

Ergo, an eternity.

Harry waved his wand nonchalantly, causing the lock on the giant gates to twist away, allowing him access to the long trail leading up to Hogwarts.

A group of chattering students surrounded the front doors, apparently frittering away the time between breakfast and their first class. Harry ducked through them quickly, not wanting to spend time answering questions or refusing to sign autographs, and met his appointment in the entrance hall.

"My, you're up early," Remus said with a grin, turning and giving Harry a knowing smile. "When's the last time you got here early enough to have breakfast?"

"Probably when I was a student," Harry agreed. "But unfortunately, I actually having things I want to get done today, so I thought maybe we could get this over with sooner rather than later."

Remus grimaced. "Still haven't found Ron?"

"I have no idea where he is," Harry admitted, frustrated. "Hermione's back at her house now, but he hasn't been home, according to Trixie, and none of his brothers know where he is."

"What about Ginny?" Remus asked with a raised eyebrow.

Harry's upper lip twitched at the name. "She'd tell me if she knew where he was."

"He's still going to the practices every day, though?"

"Yeah, that's the only place I can find him. Our conversations are pretty much the same every day, though. I try to talk to him, he ignores me until I insult him and then he yells at me and storms away…He's so bloody stubborn."

Remus looked at him curiously for a moment before clapping him on the shoulder and starting to lead him up towards Harry's office.

----

"Mr. Leonard, thanks so much for coming."

"Any time, Remus, any time. I'm glad you actually thought of me for this case. I was glad to receive your call."

Harry reached out, shaking the lawyer's hand cautiously, but politely. Christopher Leonard was a skinny, tall man who looked to be in his 60s. He smiled as he shook Harry's hand.

"An honor, Mr. Potter," he said cheerfully, nodding his head towards Harry respectfully, a move which Harry despised people doing, but tolerated, especially for a man as cheerful as this.

"Shall we take a seat?" Remus suggested, motioning to the two chairs that Harry had set out for them. Harry himself sat behind his desk, which was cleaner than usual, but that was probably because he hadn't actually been to his Hogwarts office for so long and the house elves took it upon themselves to clean it for him.

"You seem very optimistic," Harry commented as they sat, looking over at Leonard.

"Oh, I'd like to think so," Leonard said jovially, winking over at Remus. "If all this information is true that you sent me yesterday, Remus, this boy will be out of trouble before the Quidditch game on Saturday!"

Harry stiffened a bit at the reference to Saturday's game, but began to pick up a bit of Leonard's good mood. "Won't we have to go to court?"

"Not if I have anything to with it," Leonard answered, pulling some papers and files out of his briefcase. "Rules and regulations of Unforgivable Curses state that the client requires at least two testimonies of his innocence, background check of the last five year and 30 minute interrogation under veratiserum to be proven innocent. After his innocence is proven, he is monitored for a space of time, usually between two and five months, and after that the charges and all knowledge of the case are dropped."

"Well, the two testimonies we have easily, me and Remus," Harry said thoughtfully. "But how in depth do they have to be? Remus said he told you about the unbreakable vow?"

Leonard nodded.

"Will we have to reveal that detail?"

Leonard looked skeptical. "It's hard to say. It really depends on the interrogator. On top of a written testimony you will both give, you will be questioned under veretiserum for three minutes and in that time they are able to ask any question relating to the client or case. But without any knowledge whatsoever about the vow, it's highly unlikely that they will bring it up."

"That's another thing," Remus said, leaning forward. "Why do they still use veretiserum? It's been proven to only work fully when the person is under a great deal of stress."

"They don't worry about it a whole lot with the witnesses because on top of that they'll have bewitched the documenting quill to be anti-lie. With the defendant, it gets more complicated. To ensure the validity of his testimony, for the 12 hours before he takes the test, he will undergo serious mental and physical stress so as to make him vulnerable during the interrogation. Most clients who want veretiserum agree to undergo the procedure because they know they're innocent. Those who are guilty are caught even before it starts because they refuse to go through with it. What nobody knows before hand is that all the stress is fake, magical memories and such that will disappear after the veretiserum leaves their system."

Harry and Remus looked at each other with some hope. "So you're saying this thing won't even get to court?" Harry asked.

Leonard nodded. "It probably won't go any farther than the cells in the DMLE ministry wing." He stood, gathering his papers and preparing to leave. "I've got to go talk to some more people and make the arrangements with some Aurors, but I've asked Remus for you two to bring Draco to the ministry this evening at six. If we start early we should have everything done by tomorrow night. The background checks are already being compiled by my staff and we'll hand our findings over to the DMLE tonight and give them time to do their own investigating." As he put on his hat, he turned to Harry with a slight smile and held out a hand. "They won't find anything, will they?"

"I highly doubt it," Harry replied with a grin, shaking his hand thankfully.

----

The large, empty rooms of the Weasley house seemed hollow and dark to Hermione as she walked towards the stairs, a small bag over her shoulder and a hand resting on her oversized belly. Her shoes made a loud clicking sound that echoed through the entire house, each step slower than the next.

As she reached the bottom of the stairs, a young house elf's head peaked out from around the top of the stairs and beamed at the sight of her.

"Mistress Weasley! You is coming home again!"

Trixie rushed down the stairs, flinging herself onto Hermione's legs and hugging them tightly. "You is home, you is HOME!" the house elf cried for joy.

"Hello, Trixie," Hermione said warmly, feeling strangely dizzy all of a sudden but managing an encouraging smile down at the house elf who was now looking up at her with watery eyes. "I'm sorry that we both left so abruptly and didn't tell you anything. I hope you weren't too worried."

"Trixie was worried, Mistress, but Trixie said to herself, she said, 'Mistress Weasley and master Weasley is just taking a break and they be back soon'."

Hermione smiled at Trixie's reasoning. "Your exactly right, Trixie."

"But," Trixie looked around, "where is Master Weasley being?"

Hermione pursed her lips at the mention of Ron. "He's just taking a longer break than me."

Trixie seemed to accept this with joyful innocence and immediately took Hermione' bag from her and led her by the hand back up to her and Ron's room, jabbering all the way about everything she had done while they were "away".

"And I kept the kitchen tidy, ma'am, just like you always like Trixie to do and did the laundry on all the beds, even in the guest rooms…"

Hermione had to smile at Trixie's excitement. She had never thought that she would be the owner of a house elf, ever. But Ron had put up a good argument about getting Trixie, especially since Hermione became pregnant and was unable to do as much work around the house. Hermione had suggested getting a human maid, but Ron had blown that idea out the window.

"What's the point of getting a college witch who will probably just hate her job anyway and want a bunch of money when we can find some wacko House elf who will work for half of what we'd pay anyone else?"

Hermione had smacked him around the head for saying that, but in the end she had agreed, as long as they found a house elf who would accept pay. It hadn't been easy, but they ended up finding Trixie at Hogwarts and brought her home at once. They weren't the only ones who had been pleased with the arrangement, though. Trixie adored both Ron and Hermione from the moment they brought her home and despite Hermione's insistence, she only let them pay her three galleons a week, though Hermione often slipped more into the house elf's bed at night.

They reached the room and Trixie began unpacking Hermione's small overnight bag and continued to jabber away about this and that. Hermione, feeling a bit exhausted and still strangely dizzy, sat down on her bed with a sigh, keeping a smile on her face for Trixie.

"Master Harry called just last night and he says to Trixie, has I seen Master Ron? But Trixie hadn't, so she just says that he must be with Mistress Hermione…"

Trixie's voice seemed to start fading in and out in Hermione's head. The room began to spin slightly and Hermione put and hand on her head and a hand on her stomach, closing her eyes to get a bearing on herself. When she opened her eyes again, the room was spinning worse than before and Hermione found here eyes watering and Trixie's voice became garbled.

And without another warning, the room suddenly went black.

----

A small vibration in Ron's pocket startled him almost to the point of making him fall of his broom. Thankfully, he got a hold of himself and managed to get back on the ground quickly, ignoring the shouts of his team members about what was wrong.

He frowned slightly, wondering what in the world the vibrating was. As he searched through his pockets, he pulled out the only thing that he ever carried anywhere with him.

It was a small muggle cell phone, a gift from Hermione's parents to them at their wedding, which Hermione was ecstatic over. She constantly reminded Ron how much easier cell phones were than floo, but he had never gotten the hang of them, so Hermione let it go as long as he promised to keep it with him at work in case she needed to get in touch with him for a dire emergency. (Even Ron admitted that floo was not the best communication on a quidditch field.)

Cursing his ability to handle muggle technology, Ron fingered the small vibrating instrument and flipped it over a few times, wondering where all the buttons were that he was supposed to press. Finding a groove, he stuck his fingernail in and was able to flip the phone open, revealing a small screen that read "HERMIONE CALLING" in blinking letters and "accept" or "decline" underneath. Ron frowned, wishing now that he had remembered to listen when Hermione was explaining all of this to him.

He tried pressing the screen where it said, "accept", but that did absolutely nothing. The phone kept vibrating.

Biting back a few course words and wondering why Hermione was even trying to talk to him anyway, Ron started pressing all the buttons right underneath the screen until one of them beeped and the phone stopped vibrating. Wondering exactly what he had done, Ron brought the phone closer and squinted his eyes at the screen, but before he could do anything else. Trixie's squeaky voice blared from the muggle device.

"Master Weasley, Master Weasley! You is needing to come! You is needing to come NOW!"

Ron frowned. What on earth was Trixie doing with the phone? She was only supposed to use it if Hermione was…was…

Ron dropped the phone in the grass, not looking back at his team as he rushed out of the field, stopping only to grab his bag before he passed the apparition line and disappeared.

----

"If I live through this, I'm quitting the Auror squad."

Harry chuckled, pounding Draco on the back encouragingly. "I'd say that's a good goal."

They both were walking up the narrow alley towards the Ministry telephone booth, no one else around and not a sound to be heard, even though it was only 5:45 in the evening.

"When are you both going to give your testimonies?" Draco asked quietly.

"Probably tomorrow morning at sometime. We'll schedule it when we get there."

Harry saw Draco nod nervously out of the corner of his eye. The blonde's stiff posture and tense jaw gave away his obvious reluctance to actually go through with this procedure, but Harry had explained to him long and hard about how this really was his only option.

"Did you find Weasley today?"

"No, he wasn't at practice when I went. His team said he rushed out of there at about two in the afternoon, not saying anything to anyone."

Draco didn't seem surprised. "Sounds like he's finally cracked."

Harry just smiled, but didn't honor his biting remark with a reply. Sometimes he knew it was better to just let Draco act like a smart arse rather than always try to "make" him good. It was especially important in times like these, when he was stressed and scared, even if he didn't fully show it.

They rounded a corner and saw Remus leaning against a wall, waiting for them by the empty phone booth. He managed a smile as they approached.

"Chris is waiting for us inside," Remus explained, letting them step into the booth before him. "As soon as we get in, Draco, you're going to be arrested by the Auror squad, but we'll meet you down at the holding cells within a half hour and get the wheels to start turning, okay?"

Draco nodded, but he looked a little paler than usual, which was saying a lot. Harry knew that Draco hated the thought of being in a jail cell, it made him seem like his father, but he also knew that Draco would do the right thing in the end.

"Also," Remus said more seriously, looking at Draco, "don't try to fight them at all. If you do they could use that against you and try to bring this into a court case and we really don't want to have to deal with that." He raised an eyebrow at Draco. "Understand?"

"Yeah." Draco's voice cracked a little, but Harry could see him gearing himself up for the inevitable.

"All right, boys," Harry said, handing out the badges he had just received from the phone booth. "Let's go get Draco arrested."

----


	13. Won't You Come and Get Me?

_A/N: I love swing music. Too bad I can't dance worth a darn._

_Again, sorry for the wait. I don't know how I feel about this chapter. I'm not sure if I got everyone IC, so read it and tell me what you think!_

_Please review!_

**Chapter 13 – Won't You Come and Get Me?**

"_Was I a fool to think?  
The way you looked at me  
I swear you did  
But you looked away too quick."_

"_Fool to Think" by Dave Matthews Band_

----

"_May I cut in?"_

_Ginny's eyes widened at the site, but Luke simply smiled, stepping back and bowing shortly to Ginny before making his way off the dance floor, and before she knew it, Harry Potter had stepped into his place and was now slowly swaying with her to the music._

"_You are a bold one, Mr. Potter," she said wirily, smirking up at him and quite enjoying the feeling of being in his arms again._

"_Well, I can't help it if I'm the only one who was picking up your distress call."_

_She glanced over his shoulder to see that Luke had found another poor soul to drone to and breathed easier at the sight._

"_He was nice enough," she argued._

_Harry just chuckled. "For a turnip, maybe, but not for a girl like you."_

_Her eyes narrowed a bit, looking up at him suspiciously. "A girl like me?"_

_Harry nodded, confidently. "You don't like slow songs."_

_She frowned. How did he know that?_

_He must have known her inner turmoil, but he just fixed her with a winning smile._

"_And just how do you expect to save me from this fate?" she asked with a raised eyebrow._

_But her question was answered as soon as she spoke it. The slow, melodic tune transferred quite cleverly into a high paced swing number, one of her favorites._

_She started laughing from the absurdity of it all, stepping back from him to glance around at the other couples. _

_He must have planned it well, though, cause everyone seemed to be thoroughly enjoying themselves almost instantly, trying different moves and laughing at their mistakes._

"_Come on, Ginny, let's show them how it's done."_

_Harry was holding out a hand to her, as if daring her to accept, which, of course, she did._

_It was one of the first times she and Harry were able to show off their skills that they had so meticulously been working on for the past few months. Though they didn't have all the coordination down just right, they seemed to be working better than any other couple on the floor and several were stopping just to watch them._

_Grateful that Hermione had chosen short skirts for her bridesmaids, Ginny only had to worry about her shoes giving her a problem, but after a few steps even they got in the grove of things._

_Several times she would miss a beat or he wouldn't quite flip her right, but they recovered quickly and easily, both of them laughing off their mistakes. His green eyes danced with happiness every time he twirled her and she found herself laughing out loud and smiling so wide that it hurt._

_As the song wound down they both noticed the crowd that had gathered around to watch them. Among the people, Ron and Hermione were easy to spot, still in their wedding clothes and grinning like fools at the pair of them._

_The song ended and Harry dipped her dramatically, both of them posing for a few seconds as the last note rang out. A round of applause began instantly and as Harry pulled her back to her feet she felt her cheeks flame up at the site. Harry keot hold of her hand and she saw him chuckling at their reaction as well._

_Feeling impulsive, Ginny tightened her grip on Harry's hand, making him turn towards her. Without warning, she jumped into his arms, trusting his instincts and sure enough landing safely, one of his arms under her knees and shoulders and both her hoped around his neck._

_Their laughter started again at the cliché mood and both of them heard several cameras flash throughout the crowd._

_But Ginny didn't dare look away to pose for anything else._

_Her stare bore into Harry's eyes, daring him to let her go…pleading for him not to._

----

"You look like you're enjoying this all too much, Potter."

Draco glared at him from inside his invisible cell. The underground holding cells at the ministry were mobile in size and position by merely being erected magical shields placed around a prisoner. This had started off as a way to save the funds for something more practical (since the cells didn't get used much anyway) but had turned into a rather keen was the speed up the discovery of several defensive techniques that were now regularly taught in Auror training.

Harry knew that Draco could rattle off the spells without even thinking, but he had, unfortunately, been stripped of his wand upon his arrest.

"Don't waste your breath," Kingsley's deep voice spoke from behind Harry, obviously noticing Harry's distressed look at Draco's tone with him. "Once they pass the fifth hour of the induced stress, they start snapping at everything that moves. It also affects their memory slightly, causing them to forget people and events."

"Well that does explain something," Harry mused, watching as Draco held the Malfoy sneer on his face, glaring distastefully around the room but now having the sense not to try touching the shimmering, invisible wards that surrounded him. His robes was starting to look beat up and his body, as hard as he tried to fight it, was starting to crumble under the intense physical stress the ministry had been putting him through.

All in all, he looked very much like his old self…the Draco Malfoy that had been Harry's rival all those years ago.

"Is Remus done yet?" Harry finally turned away, not wanting to see his friend in such a state anymore.

Kingsley walked with him as they left the cells, heading back towards the interrogation rooms. "A few more minutes," Kingsley spoke, checking his watch. "Bloody waste of time if you ask me. You're testimony had enough in it to let that kid out of here now without even asking him under veritaserum."

Harry smirked. "That's a nice way of saying that Draco Malfoy and I have a very interesting history together."

"You said it, not me," Kingsley said defensively. "Besides, if I had been the one to question you I would have asked you more about the battle." He must have seen Harry stiffen slightly. "I knew it, you left something out, didn't you?"

"Harry!"

He had never been so relieved to hear his name shouted out. Both he and Kingsley turned to see Remus walking fast down the hall towards them, a note in his hands.

"You finished?" Harry asked.

"Barely." Remus shoved the note into Harry's hands. "A bloody owl has been terrorizing the Auror's upstairs trying to find you."

But Remus' words went unheeded as Harry read the hastily scribbled note.

_Harry-_

_At St. Mungo's with Hermione. Please come quick._

_-Ginny_

It was rather ambiguous, but urgent enough to grab his attention quickly.

He crushed the note in his hand, looking back up at Remus and Kingsley. "I'll be back in a bit."

----

Ron had never much cared for hospitals. The excessive whiteness and smell of cleaning charms couldn't possibly do anything to help a sick person feel better. Then again, he had never been sick in a hospital before, so he wasn't one to judge.

He was, however, fiercely judging the woman at the desk in front of him who seemed to be getting too much pleasure out of watching Ron wait.

"Look, do you need me to spell it for you?" he asked harshly, snapping at her and pounding a fist on the table.

The receptionist's manicured fingernails stopped their scrolling through the list of names and she raised an eyebrow at him.

"Do try yelling again, Mr. Weasley. I'm quite sure I didn't hear you the first nine times."

Her voice was high and snooty, giving off an aura of haughtiness that reminded Ron too much of the Malfoy's.

He pinched his nose with his fingers, trying to stop his headache from coming back. "Look, you don't seem to understand that my wife could possibly be IN LABOR right now!" His voice rose from a calm and steady tone to a flat out yell, startling a few people in the waiting area.

"She's not."

Ron whirled around to see Ginny walking towards him in a hurried pace.

"What? How did you get here before me?"

Ginny shot him a withered look. "Trixie knew to call Riley first. How did you expect that poor house elf to get Hermione to the hospital all by herself?" Ginny had grabbed his arm and was now dragging him towards the elevators. Ignoring her rant, Ron glanced back at the receptionist and made a rude hand gesture, causing the woman to scowl and flip her head away.

As he was pulled onto the elevator, Ron finally tuned back into Ginny's voice.

"-and I just sent an owl to Harry as well."

"Harry?" Ron hissed, trying to ignore the stares of the other people in the elevator as he was highly recognizable still dressed in his quidditch gear.

"Grow up, Ron," Ginny snapped, turning to glare at him. "You're lucky I'm letting you come and see her, with the kind of prat you've been this past week."

The elevator finally stopped and Ginny pulled him out. As he followed her lead, he noticed that they were in the maternity ward.

"Ginny, I thought you said she wasn't going into labor."

"She's not," Ginny said shortly.

Ron wanted to argue the point, but he suddenly found himself in front of a numbered door that Ginny stopped at and then turned to face him, her expression hard and serious.

"You listen, Ronald Weasley and you listen good. I am giving you three minutes to go in there and talk with her. You so much as make her _think_ about crying and you'll find a wand up your arse and your head stuck in the nearest loo, you get my drift?"

Ron looked pained. "Only three minutes?"

Ginny shrugged. "If you can last that long. She doesn't stay awake very long before passing out again."

"Passing out? What? Ginny what in the blazes are you talking about? What's wrong with her?"

Ginny sighed, biting her bottom lip and contemplating him for a moment. Her expression remained serious, but her face softened a bit. "Trixie brought her here because she passed out on your bedroom floor. Riley got her here in time for them to figure out that Hermione is going through the first few signs of loosing her baby."

Ron's breath caught in his throat. He couldn't breath.

Ginny continued.

"They gave her a potion that could possibly restore whatever damage has come to the fetus, but they won't know it's effects for another half hour, and until then, the potion is making her very drugged and quite confused." Ginny's face softened a bit. "The only thing she's said so far is your name. Which," she shot a glare at him, "is the only reason I'm letting you in to see her now. Understood?"

Ron couldn't seem to get his head around the jumble of thoughts Ginny's speech had brought into his head. He felt his bottom lip tremble slightly with fear. The only words he could get out were, "The baby?"

Ginny's face softened again. "They're doing everything they can for her, Ron."

She stepped aside and opened the door slightly for Ron to go in. He stared at it for a moment before hesitantly reaching forward to push it open. But Ginny reached out suddenly, stopping him.

"Ron." He turned to look at her, his expression full of confusion, doubt and sorrow. Ginny's face was desperate and pleading now. "You can't let her know, Ron. The healers say this was a magical injury, triggered by high stress in her life." He knew it wasn't meant to sound accusatory, but it did all the same. "If she gets more scared it could do even more damage to the baby." Ginny's tone was low and serious, but her eyes watered with a few unshed tears.

Ron felt his own tears building at the back of his eyes, but he made himself blink them away and nodded towards his little sister. "I understand. Thanks Gin."

Ginny reached up, through tear filled eyes and hugged him quickly, giving him a kiss on the cheek before turning around and walking away.

Ron turned back to the door, his hands now shaking as he slowly pushed it open.

----

Ginny didn't let the tears run out of her eyes until Ron was safely in the room and had shut the door behind him. But after that, she couldn't hold them back any more and her quiet sobs led her to the small bench across the hallway. Her hands came up to her face and she leaned forward, wanting to block off the world for just a few moments.

It wasn't often that Ginevra was forced to lie to her brother, and though she knew that this lie was only meant to be good, it still hurt her.

Riley's sorrowful voice came into her head.

"_Her raw magic is a lot more powerful, especially for a muggle-born. With all the stress she's accumulated and the number of days she's been fighting off its effects, it's going to be as hard to save Hermione as it is to save the baby…"_

Growing up with only six older brothers, Ginny had clung to Hermione instantly the moment that she and Ron had begun to be serious in their relationship. She was literally the closest thing Ginny had to a sister and one of the few females in the world that Ginny Weasley could open up to.

And she was currently lying on a hospital bed, her raw magic tearing her body apart.

And there was nothing Ginny could do about it.

"Ginny!"

She jerked her head up, startled by the vocal intrusion of her solitude, but automatically relaxed as she saw Harry jogging towards her from the elevators, concern written all over his face.

Meeting him halfway, and not caring in the least bit about appearances, she launched herself into his arms, grateful to feel him reflexively holding her back.

Her tears continued to fall as she quickly took in his scent, his touch, his heartbeat and his staggered breath, breezing across a few hairs on the top of her head.

"Are you alright?" he asked softly, not pulling out of their embrace. Neither seemed to care that they were in the middle of a hallway.

Neither seemed to care that they were supposed to be mad at each other right now.

She shook her head in his chest, taking a deep breath and finally pulling away. When she looked up at his face, she fought hard not to just kiss him right then and there.

"Hermione…" she whimpered out, the strength and walls she had built when she had confronted Ron, crumbling around her, "They said she might not make it…"

His arms stiffened, still resting on her waist and she saw the agony creep into his expression.

"The baby?" he asked, unknowingly echoing Ron's earlier words.

She shook her head, reaching up to wipe some tears away so she could see properly. "They're pretty sure the baby will be just fine."

His face was still horrified. "But…Hermione…what are they…they told you they can't do anything to save her?"

"I don't know, I don't know!" Ginny cried, burying her face into her hands and leaning into his chest again, his arms tightening around her.

"Where's Ron?" he said, after a few moments of silence, his voice cracking slightly.

"He's in the room with her," Ginny said between sobs, not wanting to pull out of his arms any time soon. She felt safe in them. More safe than she had felt for many, many years.

She knew her shoulders were bobbing. She knew she was making a gigantic wet spot on the front of his shirt. She knew his arms were holding her a little tighter than they needed to be.

But she didn't know that if she had looked up at his face just then, she would have seen Harry Potter with silent tears running down his face, his calm and controlled facade no longer holding up.

----


	14. The Angel From My Nightmare

_a/n: I am SO sorry for the wait. I have so many wonderful readers and I hate that I made you wait so long! It was a combination of a busy job, an annoying mother and an inability to get an internet connection._

_But now, here it is! FINALLY!_

**Chapter 15 – The Angel From My Nightmare**

"_Where are you and I'm so sorry  
I cannot sleep I cannot dream tonight  
I need somebody."_

_- "I Miss You" by Blink 182_

----

"_Ron….Ron!...RON…RON!"_

_Taking the stairs two at a time, Ron exploded into the room, panting and searching for Hermione._

_She was propped up on the bed, a discarded book dropped beside her and both hands on her slightly bulging belly._

_He rushed over to her._

"_What? What is it? What's wrong? Do you need more tea? Biscuts? I just had Trixie run down to the store-"_

"_Ronald," she stopped him mid sentence, a look of restrained amusement on her face. "Calm down."_

"_Calm down!" he almost cried. "A minute ago you were screaming out bloody murder and you expect me to calm down."_

_She rolled her eyes. "Oh never mind, just look." And before he could understand, she grabbed his hand, placing it carefully on the middle of her stomach and held it there._

_Just as he was about to wonder if she'd lost it, he felt a small tap underneath his hand._

_It only took him a second to realize what it was._

_He glanced up at Hermione. "Our baby? That's our baby?"_

_Hermione nodded, half giggling, half crying._

_The next few hours were spent in pure happiness, a mother and father spending their first moments with their child._

----

It was a horrifying feeling to walk into the room of a dying person. It was even more horrifying if it was a person you knew. Ron Weasley was not ignorant of either feeling. Having been through a war that lasted far longer than it should have and covered more than half of his life, Ron had been to his fair share of dying bedsides of friends, family and many people he was ashamed not to know the name of.

As Ginny's words replayed over and over in his head, Ron could take no comfort in the fact that she hadn't _said_ that _Hermione_ was _dying._

Instead, he cursed the fact that he had enough experience to know that Hermione _was_ dying and to know that there was nothing he could do about it.

Her eyes were half open, staring out the window on the other side of the room, a glossy glaze over them. Her hair had been pulled back into a messy braid to keep it out of her face, but several strands had broken loose and were clinging to her forehead, sweat beads holding them in place. Both of her hands rested on her enlarged belly, covered with a thin sheet, a few devices attached to it, monitoring the unborn baby inside.

She didn't turn when he entered, closing the door behind him. She didn't even seem to realize he was there until he sat down next to her bed, reaching out to take her hand. She gripped it back weakly, but he could tell she was squeezing as hard as she could.

She didn't turn to him.

Ron licked his lips, not knowing where to begin or even what to say.

"Ron?"

Hermione's voice was soft and horse, and she still didn't turn to him, but continued to gaze out of the open window.

"I'm here, love…" Ron's own voice cracked under his reply, tears starting to build up behind his eyes.

She finally turned at the sound of his voice, one corner of her lips twitching up as her eyes rested on him. She didn't say anything else at the moment, just tugged on his hand a little harder, indicating that she wanted him to come closer.

Hesitating at first, Ron brought his arms up around her shoulders, leaned down towards his wife and held her close as she slipped back into a coma.

----

Harry eventually led Ginny back to the bench she had been sitting on, his arms still tight around her, and her tears still gathering on the front of his shirt. He hated that it had taken this to get Ginny back into his arms, but he had to admit that it was nice to just hold her again.

His own tears had stopped just as quickly as they had started: a talent Harry had since childhood. Rarely did he ever cry, and when he did, his tears always ran out faster than other's.

But even as he thought it, an unbidden horror flashed into his mind and he dreaded to see it come to pass.

Because he knew he could never shed enough tears for Hermione.

----

Hermione dreamed.

She saw the pale faced, dark-haired boy sitting next to a freckly red-head and carefully held in her laughter as they managed to look like idiots in front of her within the first ten seconds.

She saw the Basalisk before her and, what seemed like moments later, woke up to the adventure already being over.

She saw her fist connect with a snooty Slytherin and the appreciative look the freckled-faced boy gave her, bringing unbidden color to her cheeks.

She saw the handsome quidditch star stutter and blush as he asked her to a dance, a dance where he wanted to be seen with her.

She saw the scarred, but determined, boy teaching a ragtag group of students how to defend themselves.

She saw the redhead snogging a pretty black girl and felt her heart tearing in two.

She saw the most hated wizard in the world finally fall under the combined power of courage, loyalty, wisdom, cunning and love.

She saw a diamond ring in front of her eyes, sparkling off of the lights in the gigantic stadium.

She saw the lights fade, the diamond turn to rock and the stadium becoming black.

She opened her eyes and, seeing him there, started to cry

----

Ginny's cries died down till she was fast asleep against Harry, still holding him tightly, dried tear tracks staining her freckled face. Waving his wand silently, he softened the bench they sat in and adjusted her slightly in the arms to make both of them more comfortable.

Turning towards the still closed door, he waited.

----

"This wasn't supposed to happen!" Hermione sobbed, clinging to Ron with every last ounce of strength she could muster. "We were supposed to wait to have a baby…We were doing fine…"

He was here, with her now. Hermione knew that if she ever needed Ron with her it was right at this moment. All thoughts of fear or grief over him became non existent and she wanted nothing more than to disappear into his arms and never leave him again.

Ron whispered a few encouraging words in her ear, trying his best to stay strong for her. But she knew he was scared too. They both were. In a few minutes she would pass out again and only a few minutes after that they would find out if their child was going to live or die.

Hermione had dreams for her future with this child. She had hopes and plans, visions of things that only a mother could imagine. She's take the good with the bad, do her very best, and try with all her might to raise her child well.

There is nothing more sorrowful than a mother's cries for her child.

----

The hallway seemed flooded with red hair and freckles.

But it was one of the few times that Harry was not feeling joy among them.

Mr. and Mrs. Weasley had arrived first, both of them more calm than they should be, but after sitting down, Harry noticed that Molly was leaning into Arthur more than normal.

Fred came next, alone. It never seemed to get easier for Harry to see.

George's death had been the first time Harry did not enjoy the sea of redheads around him.

Bill and Fleur arrived with their three-year-old Ellie in tow. The small girl clung fearfully to her mother, having been told of her aunt's "bad" condition in the hospital.

Charlie had dragged Percy and Penelope with him, mostly, Harry figured, for Mrs. Weasley's benefit than for anything else. She always liked having her whole family with her.

It was hard for Harry to realize that their family would never be "whole" again.

Several of her brothers offered to take Harry's place on the bench beside Ginny, but Harry shooed them away.

Merlin be damned if he was going to give up either of his girls today.

----

Hermione had gone back to sleep again, Ron's arm still around her back, his other hand clinging to one of hers, squeezing it every so often to remind himself that she was still there.

----

A smart looking wizard strided down the hall, stopping at Hermione's room and raising a curious eyebrow at the cluster of people gathered outside it.

"Are you all here for this patient?" he asked aloud.

Ginny startled awake at the sharp voice and Harry helped her sit up before striding over to the medwizard.

"We're family," he declared, speaking for all the Weasley's and himself. He turned to see that Fred was sitting with Ginny now, who was looking at him peculiarly. "We want to know what's going on."

The medwizard gave them all a sckeptical look, but decided to humor them. Glancing at his clipboard, he sighed deeply.

"Patient Granger-Weasley is just about to finish a cycle of Silenctin Potion." He looked up at Harry with a raised eyebrow. "More information is restricted to immediate family members only."

Harry opened his mouth to argue, but the wizard simply slammed the door behind him, disappearing into Hermione's room.

Heaving a frustrated sigh, Harry turned to face the Weasley's again.

But not before Ron unceremoniously ran into him from behind.

----

Ron jerked around as the doctor entered, gliding up to Hermione's bedside and turning on Ron.

"You are required to leave as I check Patient Weasley's reaction to the potion."

"Like hell I am," Ron snarled. "I'm her husband and I'm staying right here with her."

"Husband or not, I am not required to allow others in the room as I examine a patient this critical! Leave!"

And with a wave of his wand, Ron found himself pushed out of the dor back into the hallway and right into a surprised Harry Potter.

----

"They didn't even let you stay?" Harry said, flabbergasted as he helped Ron to the bench next to Ginny and Fred. Harry himself stayed standing.

"Sorry about him."

They all turned to see Riley walking down the hall towards them at a brisk pace, her healers robes billowing behind her and a tired smile on her face.

"He's been here for almost 48 hours and that tends to make any of us cranky."

There was silence for a moment as they all stared at her and then suddenly they all seemed to start speaking at once.

"I-" Riley cleared her throat and raised her voice above the noise, "I can't really answer any of your questions now." The Weasley's all quieted except for Ellie who whimpered into her mother's shoulder. Riley gave her a sympathetic look that she soon moved over all the Weasley's, finally stopping at Ron.

"I will do everything in my power for Hermione, and for your baby. I know it's an awful situation to be in, but the best thing you all can do right now is to wait out here and now disturb us. There will be a lot of magic resonating through the room as we attempt to extract some of Hermione's raw magic from her body. The potion she took should has lowered her natural shields so that we have access to her magical core."

"Ron," she turned to him again and he went pale, "it is a tricky operation which will take between ten to thirty minutes. Please keep your faith in Hermione, me and Healer Robinson," she indicated the wizard who had entered Hermione's room.

And without another word she went through the door, closing it softly behind her.

----

The longest 29 minutes of Ronald Weasley's life passed.

He remembered nothing except the lights he could see, flashing underneath the door where his wife lay.

He didn't remember any of his family trying to talk soothingly to him.

He didn't remember when Ellie finally broke down in tears and her parents had to take her home.

He didn't remember when his mother and father both tried to get him to talk.

He didn't remember when Harry put a comforting hand around his shoulders and held him tightly.

But he felt the hand still there as the light stopped and the door opened.

----

It was one of those rare moments that Riley experience on her job. The two extremes were always rare.

This one seemed to top them all, for this time she had two sentences to say.

Handing a tiny bundle of joy over to Ron, she flashed him a brilliant smile.

"Congratulations, Ron. You have a brand new, healthy baby girl."

A muffled cheer rang through the hallways and Weasley upon Weasley pressed close to Ron to have a look at the 5 lb. 2 oz. newest Weasley.

But Ron, after an expression or pure ecstasy passed over his face, gazed back at Riley.

"What about Hermione?" he whispered, though his words silence everyone there. "Is she alright?"

Riley's smile dropped just a bit. "I won't lie, Ron. Her magic was deeply affected and harmed by the operation. Recovery to her full magical strength could take months or even years. It's a hard process to go through and retain any magical properties at all."

"But she's alright?" Riley was surprised to see Ron's face now glowing with joy and hope. "She's alive?"

Riley raised an eyebrow. "Well she's resting right now, but of course she's ali-"

She was cut off mid sentence by Ron pulling her into a tight hug.

-----

Ginny, who had enough sense to grab the tiny baby out of Ron's arms before she was crushed between her father and her mother's doctor, carefully cradled her in her arms, gazing in wonder at her new tiny niece. The small mouth opened and closed in a tired yawn as the baby continued to sleep on, oblivious to the going's on around her.

A hand slid across her shoulders, but its familiar touch and warmth allowed Ginny to know who it was without looking up.

"You cause a lot of trouble, little one," Harry said softly.

"Who? Me or the baby?" Ginny replied with a smirk.

Harry reached his fingers down to lightly stroke the baby's cheek.

"I guess these things can be pretty cute."

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Boys are so insensitive, aren't they Virginia?" She made cooing noises at the baby.

"Virginia?" Harry echoed, confused.

"Well, she's got to have a good name, doesn't she?" Ginny said smartly. "Besides, everyone thought my name was Virginia - which I don't blame them for, it's a whole lot better than Ginevra - and this way we can both be called Ginny!"

She glanced up and over at Harry to see him looking confused.

"It's not your kid that was just born, Ginny," he reminded her, finally, trying to sound just as smart.

She raised an eyebrow at him. "And whose fault is that?"

Without another word, she walked back over to Ron, leaving a flabbergasted Harry behind her.

Ah, victory.


	15. My Heart Belongs to You

_This is one of my favorite chapters so far, I hope you all enjoy!_

**Chapter 15 – My Heart Belongs To You**

"_When you say that I'm one of a kind  
That I'm so strong and true, I promise you  
I'll try to be that kind of man  
Because you love me like I am."_

_- "Like I Am" by Rascal Flatts_

_----_

"_You did what?"_

"_I applied again," Ginny said hotly, shuffling more papers into her bag as she tried to clear up her desk. She had no idea how it always got so messy, especially since it didn't seem like she ever accomplished anything at her job. "Is there a law against that or something?"_

_Edward kept frowning, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "I thought we talked about this, Ginevra."_

"_No," her eyebrows rose as she glanced up at him, "YOU talked about it. I sat there like a coward who was letting you take over my life and make my decisions!"_

"_I'm not trying to make your decisions!" He looked flabbergasted. "I just don't see what the point is any more. They've rejected you, what, three times already?"_

_She scowled up at him and closed her bag with a loud snap! "Twice." Her voice was sharp, daring him to continue. Obviously, he didn't get it._

"_Bollocks, Ginny! How many people apply that many times? Can't you do something else with your life rather than go off and get killed?"_

_Her jaw dropped in amazement at his candidness and she wanted to scream. "For your information," she held her tongue, "Harry told me that the more times you apply, the better than looks on your applications. It shows persistence and diligence-"_

"_It also shows that you're a few clicks dead in the head," Edward interrupted, looking exasperated. "Why aren't you just staying in this job? You'll be promoted soon and start getting a real salary-"_

"_No, Edward," Ginny snapped, moving around him to exit her small office. "I'm sick of waiting for these people to remember that I'm here. I did not graduate from Hogwarts for this type of job!"_

"_But this is the type of job you get!"_

_His almost-yell froze Ginny in her tracks. Not because of what he had said, but because of what he had not said. Eyes wide and disbelieving, she turned back to him._

"_Excuse me?" she commanded._

_Edward colored as he realized what he had implied and hastily tried to cover it up, but Ginny cut off his words again._

"_Excuse me? Did you just imply what I think you did?" She reached out, shoving him back against the wall with one accusing finger, ignoring his mutters as he tried to explain. "Do you think that I can't be an Auror because I'm a girl?"_

_Dead silence followed her question, and she kept her gaze locked with his, daring him to tell her she had gotten it wrong._

_Receiving no reply, she suddenly whirled around, storming away with her heels clicking the ground ominously in the almost empty Ministry floor._

----

"You look like you just walked out of hell."

Draco scowled over his shoulder, pulling on his cloak and gathering the last of his things.

"I wouldn't be talking if I were you, Potter," he quipped, turning to face Harry. "Have you changed your clothes in the last 48 hours?"

"Ah, Draco," Harry chuckled and swung and arm around the young Malfoy's shoulders, starting to lead him towards the door, "life wouldn't be right if we weren't constantly trying to annoy one another."

Draco rolled his eyes, shrugging off Harry's arm and slinging his bag over his shoulders as he reached to open the door for them. "Your too chipper for my taste. Something happen while I was in la-la land back there?"

Harry got a slightly wistful look in his eyes. "Hermione had her baby."

Draco's eyes narrowed. "Serious? I thought she wasn't due for another few months."

"There were complications," Harry said vaguely, waving at the guard as they passed the front desk.

"I take it by the fact that no one has tried to kill me, that everything went alright during the interrogation?"

Harry smirked. "Can't remember that much, can you?"

Wanting to hit him over the head, but restraining himself, Draco just scowled. Potter knew exactly how much Draco hated this.

"You're a free man," Harry said, chuckling, "no worries."

Though Draco knew that Harry was telling the truth, he couldn't get the idea out of his head that there was a lot more that Harry wasn't telling.

----

Ron spent about a minute slowly shutting the door, careful to not make one sound as it silently clicked into place. Turning around, he saw that Ginny was still in the waiting area, the only one left now, her nose buried in a "Witch Weekly" story.

She glanced up as he walked over and smiled at him. "How is she?"

"Asleep, thankfully," Ron said, blowing out a sigh. "She's so weak…" He looked helplessly up at Ginny. "I feel like a lousy husband."

Ginny studied him for a moment before calmly putting her magazine aside and standing up to look at him in the eyes.

"You should."

His shoulders drooped a bit and he looked utterly ashamed.

"But," she continued, "You're here now. You have a new daughter to look after. You have an ill wife to take care of…and I haven't heard you once mention the Quidditch team."

Ron seemed startled and taken aback by the statement, not quite understanding.

Ginny smirked, blowing some hair out of her eyes. "Ron, do you know what made Hermione upset the other day? I mean really," she added, as he nodded. "Do you know why she didn't want to see you, yet she still wanted to know where you were all the time? Do you know why she couldn't think about you without crying, yet all she could think about was you?"

Ron swallowed a lump in his throat, tears gathering at the back of his eyes. How much more guilty could he feel?

Ginny reached up, laying a hand on his shoulder. "She didn't think she was your first priority. She didn't think the baby mattered as much to you as Quidditch did. She didn't think that she was the first thing you thought about in the morning and the last thing you thought about at night."

Tears were streaming down Ron's cheeks now and he brought a hand up to hide his face. His shoulders bobbed silently and he struggled to find the words. Ginny's arms came up around his shoulders, pulling him into a strong hug, and he cried into her shoulder.

"She's the only thing I think about," he admitted, his breath hitching between his soft sobs. "Since I was thirteen years old, she's never left my mind…"

Ginny felt her own tears pricking, knowing that Ron's words about Hermione echoed some of her own words about a certain other member of the Golden Trio.

"I wanted her to see me, to see what I could be, for her. I wanted to be who she was so determined I could be…"

He pulled out of the hug, reaching up to wipe the remaining tears away. "I guess I just went about a lousy way of showing her."

"Not to mention, illegal," Ginny added, with a raised eyebrow, earning a scowl from Ron.

"What if it was Harry?" he asked back. "What if you were in my place and Harry was in Hermione's? Wouldn't you do all you could to be the best for him?"

Ginny started a bit when Ron brought Harry into the conversation, but she recovered enough to figure out a good answer.

"Yes," she said truthfully. "You know I did everything I could to get him to notice me. But, Ron, do you know what he told me during my fifth year when we were going out?"

Ron shook his head.

"Harry said he only noticed me when I wasn't trying. He said he enjoyed watching me when I thought he wasn't looking. He said he started loving me when I stopped trying to win him." Tears gathered behind her eyes as she said the words, her heart aching in the empty spot she still held for him.

Ron looked truly sobered at her words, and she could see his understanding dawning as well as a newfound respect for Harry shining in his eyes.

"Hermione is an ambitious and brilliant woman. It's natural that people around her feel the need to live up to her standards. But, Ron," she reached up, holding his face in her hands, "she didn't have any standards for you. She's known you for too long to want you to change. She just wanted to belong to you, the real you, and live happily ever after."

Ron bit his bottom lip nervously. "I've mucked it up, haven't I?"

Ginny smiled a bit, reaching up to kiss his cheek. "Yes, you have. But don't worry. She'll forgive you. We always do."

She stepped back, turning a bit to gather up her bag and cloak. "I've got to get back home and make sure Riley didn't collapse on the steps after her long shift." Smiling sympathetically at him, she reached forward to give him one last hug. "Give your daughter a kiss for me."

Ron chuckled. "It's still weird to hear that. 'Your daughter'."

Ginny's smile brightened. "Speaking of which, did you guys ever decide on a name? I had a few suggestions that I ran by Harry-"

Ron held up a hand. "We'll leave them there, thank you. Hermione and I have narrowed it down. Besides, maybe your suggestions should be kept between Harry and you. Who knows what'll happen next?"

And in a total twist of the conversation, Ron reached over, kissing her surprised cheek and walking back into Hermione's room, leaving Ginny ridged in the hallway, unable to figure out how the subject had changed so quickly, and why his words meant so much to her.

----

Harry had expected her to be there when he got home, but it we still so tempting to blast her with a hex before she could open her mouth. But that would set Dobby off in a nervous rant, and he had no desire to deal with a crazy house elf at the moment.

"I hear congratulations are in order," Emily said happily, sitting upright on Harry's kitchen table with her legs crossed, and her eyes focused solely on him.

He walked passed her without looking and started making himself some coffee. Merlin, he was tired! Couldn't she taunt him another day? Like, maybe, when he was locked into a lifetime marriage with her?

"How did you get in here?" he asked, already knowing the answer, but not wanting to bring up any other subject.

"You have the most charming house elf!" She squealed, sliding off the table and walking over to the other side of the counter that he was working on. "He adores you. Well," she paused, glancing up at him innocently, "who wouldn't adore you?"

Harry raised a disbelieving eyebrow. "You are so twisted."

She squelched her nose cheekily and shrugged. "There have to be people like me in the world, Harry. Otherwise no one would realize how great people like you really are."

"Your logic astounds me," he said truthfully, grabbing a finished mug of coffee and downing half of it in one gulp, instantly feeling more awake than he had for the past day and a half. "Did you need to say something to me, or can I go to bed?"

"Well, I could follow you there," Emily said with a wink. Harry didn't honor her with any response, but continued downing the rest of his mug. "Oh Harry," she came around the counter to stand next to him; "you left that one wide open!"

Harry shrugged off the hand she tried to lay on his shoulder and stepped away, putting his mug in the sink and attempting to leave the room.

She blocked the exit to the stairs, looking dubiously at him. "What kind of host are you, Harry? Walking out in the middle of our conversation?"

"I believe you were the only one talking. I was leaving."

He tried again to leave through the other door, but she grabbed the back of his shirt, catching him off guard and twisting him around till they faced each other again. Without time to think, she had placed her lips soundly on his, her grip holding him tightly to her.

A full five seconds later, five seconds Harry would never forgive himself for, he managed to shove her back, looking at her with disgust and reaching up to purposely wipe his mouth. She laughed at his expression, a twisted laugh.

"Come, Harry, we are adults. I happen to know that you enjoyed that kiss very much." She smirked, daring him to contradict her.

"You can keep living in that world all you want, Emily, but leave me out of it." His voice was sharp and annoyed, giving her the impression that she was winning. He knew she wouldn't back out that easily, and if he turned to leave again and she even thought about touching him, he would probably use his wand on her.

Now would not be a good time to get the authorities involved in this.

He scowled at his lack of options, seeing that she was, in fact, still standing there, looking triumphant.

"Look, you've already played your cards, Emily. The match on Saturday will tell us both if you've played them the right way."

"Don't let us forget, Mr. Potter, that you have also played your cards." She smiled sweetly up at him and walked forward. He didn't give her the pleasure of seeing him squirm, but merely looked disgusted as she ran a finger down his jaw. "Played them with me, as a matter of fact." She chuckled deeply, her face drawing closer. "I wonder what Mr. Weasley would think if he actually knew the card…Or even pretty little Miss Weasley."

She quickly jerked his head down for another kiss, but he was ready this time and snapped his hand up, grabbing hold of her arm and shoving her, partially with just muscle but also with a bit of wandless magic, towards his front door. Her comment about Ron, and Ginny especially, poured anger through him.

"I believe your business with me is concluded," he scowled. He snapped his fingers, grateful for one for Dobby's promptness as Emily gasped in surprise at the house elf's sudden appearance. "Dobby, show this woman out and never let her in my house again."

Without another word and feeling more defeated than victorious, Harry turned towards the stairs and did not look back, hoping beyond hope that he would never have to see her face again.

----

Ginny barely had the sense to figure out where her key was before she managed to fumble it into the front door and stumble into the small foyer of their home. The lights were all off, but she could still see from the light that came through the windows that the steps were clear. Obviously Riley had made it to her bed alright, which was a relief to Ginny. She couldn't count the number of times she had come downstairs in the morning to find Riley collapsed on the stairs or couch, too tired to make it to her bed. Probably as many times as Riley had nursed Ginny in bed after she had drunk too many pints.

Letting out a long sigh and relieving herself of her cloak, Ginny started towards the small couches in the living room. Without thinking, or looking, she tossed her purse into one of the couches, only to be startled instantly by a surprised yelp and a body tumbling off the couch and onto the floor.

Ginny screamed before she could think about her reaction. It wasn't everyday you came home to see a strange person sleeping on your living room couch. But suddenly she realized that it wasn't a strange person.

"Bloody fine 'Hello' there, Ginny," Edward grunted, gathering himself off the floor and rubbing his leg where her purse had hit him. "What do you keep in there, bricks?"

Ginny colored with embarrassment, moving over to help him sit back on the couch. "Well, I didn't expect you to be laying on my couch. Usually that's Riley, and she can sleep through a Death Eater attack after she's been on a long shift." She sat next to him, looking concerned, but actually annoyed with his presence there. All she really wanted to do now was get some sleep, not have another long debate with Edward.

"Sorry," Edward had the gall to act embarrassed. "I didn't know where you were, but I waited till Riley got home and she said you were coming soon, so I decided to wait." He looked doubtfully at the couch. "I guess I just got a little tired waiting."

Ginny felt a stab of pity. Riley had gone home hours before her, getting off shift right after Hermione delivered the baby. Ginny had stuck around to visit with family and hold her niece. He must have waited all night.

"Well, I'm here now," she said, unnecessarily. "Did you want something?"

For the first time since she had met him, Edward suddenly looked uncomfortable with himself. His eyes would not meet hers and he stood up, so that they were not sitting together anymore.

"I've been thinking a lot about what we, er, talked about the other night."

Ginny frowned. It had been as close to a "talk" as Pigwidgeon was to Fawkes, but she remained silent.

"I realize that a lot of the strain in our relationship has been my fault. My, well, overprotectivness."

She had to agree with him there.

"And then I realized that there was only one way to really get rid of that for us…"

Ginny had expected a talk like this soon, even hoped for it a bit. Their relationship had been rocky from the start and she knew that if one of them didn't end it soon, they were going to drive each other mad.

But to her surprise, the next words out of his mouth weren't "I think we need to see other people." Instead, he swiftly knelt on one knee in front of her, pulling out a small box from his pocket and holding it open in front of her.

Ginny's mouth went dry and her eyes widened in shock. What in all of Merlin's names was he doing?

"I realize that I love you Ginny Weasley. I've loved you for quite some time now. It leads me to be suspicious of others, for I want you only as my own. It leads me to argue sometimes, for I only want what I think is best for you. It leads me now, to ask you this question."

Ginny gulped, wishing she could remember at that moment how to apparate, but for some reason, the knowledge escaped her and she felt stuck.

"Ginny Weasley, will you marry me?"

It was the second time tonight he had called her Ginny. He must have done it on purpose, for she didn't instantly flare up when he talked. His voice was low and soothing, so much like it had been when they had first started dating. His eyes shown with….something. She didn't know if it really was love or not. She believed that he believed that he was in love with her, but she knew for sure that there was no way she was in love with him.

A weaker girl might have rationalized that this was her last chance. A weaker girl might have rationalized that Harry Potter's skull was too thick to get any hopes up. A weaker girl might have created love in her heart for Edward. A weaker girl might have said 'yes'.

But fortunately, Ginny Weasley never had been a weaker girl.

-----

_A/N: Please review!_


	16. I Don’t Get Much Sleep

_a/n: This story is getting longer than I thought it would ever be, but I hope you all are still enjoying it! _

_As a special request for this chapter (which I'm not quite sure about) I ask that everyone leave a review, even if it's only a word or two about what you think. I'd like to see how many people are actually reading this story. It would be pretty cool, so thanks!_

**Chapter 16 – I Don't Get Much Sleep**

"_How are you doing now that you know_

_How I'm doing since you did _

_What you've what you've done to me?"_

"_How am I Doin'" by Dirks Bentley_

_----_

_It wasn't anything grand or wonderful. No reporters stood outside the gates, snapping photos at everyone who passed by. No stories appeared in magazines about the couple and how right or wrong they were for each other. In fact, no one really knew, except a few select friends and family who brought more happiness to the occasion than the couple could have ever wanted._

_It had to be a muggle ceremony since the groom was legally unable to wed in the wizarding world, being a werewolf and all, but that didn't bother any of them. Her dress was a beautiful creamy white, her hair changed to her original deep black for the occasion, done up just the way he liked it, a veil crowing her head. His tux was rented, a dark black that matched her hair. A single white rose was pinned to his pocket, matching the bouquet she held in her hands._

_No one walked her down the aisle, her father dying in the recent war and his father dead long before that. They didn't want to fill the spot with anyone who didn't fit either of those categories, so they left it blank as a memory._

_There were a lot of memories._

_The best man looked remarkably like a different black-haired boy who used to always stand at the grooms side, but he wasn't that boy. He was a man now, a quite famous one at that. He cheered the loudest as the new husband and wife kissed._

_The thirty or so guests went to the reception at a friend's house. Simple, tasteful, and done in a backyard, it was just what the couple had wanted. The only sadness was found in the memories of those who were not with them there, those who had been lost already,_

_There were sad memories too._

_The flower girls joked with one another, both complaining about their new shoes and specific boys who wouldn't ask them to dance. After the bushy brown-haired girl was finally swept away by her boyfriend, the red-haired flower girl was left alone. But not for long._

_The gangly best man dragged her into a dance, making her smile and laugh. Almost making her forget. But also making her remember. Making her remember the good times before. The times when she didn't want to forget._

_There were happy memories too._

_As the guests toasted one last time to the happy couple, the black-haired best man gazed longingly at his friends. He saw the light and happiness shining in their eyes and the love they shared for one another._

_And as he longed for the past to be rewritten, for his life to be changed, he also longed for what that couple had._

_Not noticing the red haired girl glancing at him from a few tables over, he had no idea how long it would take him to get it. And how much he would have to endure._

----

A small red-haired toddler wobbled on her feet, her face in an expression of compete concentration as she worked one foot in front of the other, careful steps taking her towards her goal.

A man with red hair with just a hint of grey, held his arms out towards the girl, an oafish grin on his face as he encouraged her forward, his eyes full of obvious wonder as he drank in the sight of his daughter taking her first steps towards him.

An older child, probably around seven or eight, with bushy red hair, came up behind the man, wrapping her arms around his neck and following hi gaze towards her baby sister, joining in her father's words of encouragement, bliss written across her face as she gets lost in the moment with her family.

A simple picture frame rests on the fire mantle behind them, depicting a bookish woman, her busy hair held back in a tie and her arms wrapped around the red haired man, both of them smiling joyfully towards each other and the camera, sneaking secret kisses and their hands never leaving one another.

Two simple candles sit on either side of the picture, continually burning softly in the glow of the almost-set sun, charmed to remain lit forever, or, at least, until the memory of the woman ceased haunting the family she had left behind.

With a start, Hermione Weasley awoke.

----

Ron was jerked out of a fitful, upright sleep as Hermione suddenly sat up in bed, a sob strangled in her throat as she glanced wildly around the room, tears filling her eyes.

Without thinking, Ron leapt forward, gathering her into his arms as her tears started to fall, her body shaking with fright and anxiety at whatever she had just experienced.

She seemed to grip him tighter than usual, her arms coming around his waist and her hands locking together on his back. Ron wasn't in a hurry to let her go, either, and, for a moment, they simply stayed there, holding each other, both of them realizing how much they had missed.

"Alright?" Ron finally whispered, pulling back enough to kiss the top of her head, but then brining her back into his arms again.

"I'm so glad you're here," she replied simply, her voice slightly muffled in his chest, and her grip not failing.

"Of course I'm here," Ron said firmly, but then his heart broke a bit as he realized what she was referring to. "I'm sorry I wasn't before."

She shook her head slightly, turning to rest her cheek over his heart. "It's my fault too."

He heard the exhaustion in her voice, but chose not to say anything. He was at a loss at how to reply, though. Now was not the time to get into another argument, even if it was about whose fault it was. Though Ron knew the blame rested squarely on him, Hermione must have felt guilt for rejecting him so quickly without even letting him defend himself.

Finally, choosing his words carefully, he pulled back from her, making it so they were looking into each others eyes. "You know I love you more than anything in this world and nothing can make that change."

Anguish and shame flashed across her face for a moment, but Ron kept his hands on her shoulders, stroking them gently with his fingers. Silently she mouthed "I know", her voice chocked up with emotion and more tears gathering in her eyes.

Ron felt a few more of his own tears fall as he pulled her back into his embrace.

Meekly, he heard her whisper, "And you know that I love you…all of you…and I have ever since I was fourteen years old."

Ron clamped his eyes shut tighter, trying to block the tears, but unable to do so. Burying his face into her hair, his reply came out in barely more than a whisper.

"I know."

----

An incessant knocking startled Harry out of a fitful sleep, his eyes flashing open at the same time he reflexively reached for his wand under his pillow. Morning amnesia swept over for a moment and he blinked several times, trying to remember where he was and what was going on.

Thankfully, slipping his glasses onto his face and seeing Dobby stick his head in moments later and cleared a few things up.

"Dobby is sorry to wake you, Master Harry Potter, sir, but Mister Lupin is insisting that he speak with you."

Another blink brought back the past week to Harry's mind and he forced himself to get up, shoving his wand in his back pocket and throwing on a t-shirt to go with the jeans he had slept in. Dobby skirted away, obviously running down to tell Remus that Harry was coming, and Harry ducked into his bedroom, making sure he didn't walk down there looking like the living dead.

A tired and exhausted face stared back at him, but was most definitely his. He couldn't remember the last time he had slept through the night. After returning from the hospital that morning, Harry had crashed onto his bed, grateful that he coordinated his own work schedule and was prepared for a good five or six hours of sleep. Glancing at his watch informed him that he had barely gotten three.

He splashed a bit of water on his face, toweling it dry quickly and heading downstairs.

Remus was sitting at his kitchen table, wearing a pleasant expression as he stood to greet Harry with their customary hug. Harry's last year at Hogwarts and the subsequent years spent in American and England had kindled a kind of father-son relationship with the werewolf, something akin to what Harry had wanted to get with Sirius. When Remus finally got married to Tonks, he had Harry stand as his best man and Harry had sworn to do the same for him. Harry had stayed with Tonks and Remus for a few years after their marriage and considered Remus something like the godfather. Indeed, most of the wizarding world knew Remus as a sort of honorary godfather to Harry, nothing to replace Sirius, of course, but enough to give Harry a family.

"I see everything went alright last night?" Remus questioned.

Harry couldn't help but smile brightly. "They have a beautiful little girl. Ron wouldn't tell us the name, said he needed to talk to Hermione first." The mention of Hermione must have brought some anxiety onto Harry's face, because Remus raised a curious eyebrow.

"And how is she doing?"

Harry grimaced. "Well, I suppose. Apparently her raw magic had begun to harm the baby and they had to do some tricky spellwork to save both of them." He looked seriously up at Remus. "They say she's lost almost all of her magical reserves in her core."

Remus would have gasped in surprise, but instead his eyebrows merely rose to his hairline. "I didn't think that was possible without the witch or wizard dying. There are several dark spells that do that sort of thing."

"It was a close call," Harry agreed, blowing out a sigh. "And a long night."

Remus looked apologetic. "I know you were trying to catch up on sleep, so I'll keep this quick, but I thought you would be interested in this."

He held up the day's Daily Prophet for Harry to see.

Harry's jaw dropped to the floor as he read the headlines on the front page.

----

"May I help you?"

Emily serenely turned to the voice that came out of an office a few feet behind her that she had just walked by. A middle-age witch was sticking her head out, looking at Emily distrustfully. Her hair was done up in a messy bun, ebony black streaked with bright pink and purple. Her robes were those of an official Auror, probably pretty high ranked, and her nailed were painted to match the streaks in her hair.

A quick appraisal of all this told Emily this was no one she should bother herself with.

"No thank you," she replied in a sickeningly sweet voice. It was the first time she had actually replied to anyone who had spoken her through her journey into the Ministry building and eventually into the DMLE headquarters. Catcalls from men were easy to ignore and more than once she had faked hearing problems.

Turning away again, she continued her search, but was stopped once more by someone grabbing her elbow rudely, jerking her around.

"Ma'am, unless you have an official visitor's clearance, I'm going to have to ask you to leave." It was the same woman, her expression becoming harder as she spoke to Emily.

"Oh really? How is it that I was able to get this far without someone stopping me before?" Emily countered. Something about the woman was starting to unnerve her slightly and she could tell that the woman had a different agenda than just getting Emily out of the building. It was almost as if she knew her from somewhere.

"Obviously there are more important things for us to be dealing with than obnoxious Americans busting into the filing department of the DMLE."

Emily couldn't help but frown. "The filing department? I was looking for the department of Ward and Safety Measures."

That seemed to have done something, for the woman dropped her arm abruptly, instantly becoming more suspicious. "Oh really? Care to share why?"

"Not particularly," Emily said truthfully, dramatically rubbing her arm where the woman had gripped it. "But I suppose you won't take that for an answer, would you?"

"Maybe I could help you get to wherever you're heading quicker than you, seeing as you'll probably get lost in every department," she replied cockily, folding her arms in front of her.

The gesture triggered something in Emily's memory and the identity of the woman almost floated to her mind, but it was lost as quick as it had come.

The last time she had seen this woman, she had not looked like this.

Emily sighed, getting frustrated. "And you are?"

The woman snorted. "Right. I think first you better tell me who you are and why you are trying to find the WSM without a visitor's pass."

Emily huffed, but decided that she wasn't getting anywhere being elusive. "Alright…I'm looking for Remus Lupin."

The woman's eyes flashed dangerously at her and she had to force herself to not take a step back. "Why."

It was a command, not a question, but Emily managed a smile. "Touch a soft spot?"

The Auror unexpectedly whipped out her wand, pointing it at Emily's chest. "What do you want with Remus Lupin?"

Emily held out her hands in a submissive gesture. "Whoa, calm down, honey. I just was looking for him to…discuss a few things."

The Auror held her wand and her gaze on Emily for a few moment moments before replying. "Whatever you need to discuss with him, you can discuss with me."

"With you?" Emily raised a confused eyebrow. Who was this lady and what in the world did she have to do with Harry's werewolf friend?

"I'll be sure my husband gets your messege."

Emily wanted to laugh. Who was she kidding? "Are you serious? You're the chick who married Harry's godfather? Why you can't be much older than me, the cradle robber."

The woman merely laughed, apparently having heard it a million times. "For your information, 'honey', I was out here in the real world fighting real problems while you were in grade school wondering which outfit to wear."

Furious at the woman's candor, Emily realized that she would be no help. "Fine, be that way." She turned and began walking back towards the exit. "I have plenty of ways to get what I want."

----

Tonks glared at Emily's retreating back, wishing she could have really used her wand. It still was clenched in her very tight fist, her knuckled turning white over the pressure, but she ignored it.

A whole new piece had been brought into the puzzle of their lives if Emily was now trying to get at Remus.

Tonks had no doubt that had been Emily. Despite that she had never actually met the woman, she had seen her at the Weasley's party and had seen a picture that Harry sent. Emily, predictably, had no idea who she was, but the small flicker of recognition in her eyes when Tonks revealed her relationship with Remus showed that Emily had probably seen Tonks at the party as well.

After Emily was no longer in site and glaring at the door was doing her no good, Tonks practically raced up to Remus' office, bypassing a few people who called out to her and locking the door behind her as she entered.

Remus had to still be at Harry's, breaking the news to him. They had both been horrified this morning to see the headlines on the Daily Prophet and knew that Harry, ever being averse to that particular newspaper, probably wouldn't see them for a while.

Plastered at the top of every story had been a headline describing one more Chudley Cannon player who was mysteriously suddenly unable to play in tomorrows game. Ron hadn't been among the listed, but there were ailments from Wizard Pox to death in immediate family members that knocked player after player off the team rooster for tomorrow. Fortunately, Tonks knew that the team was equipped with plenty of standby players, at least two for every position, but the Cannon's reputation had been based on their prime team's performance, their starting lineup.

Neither Remus nor Tonks knew exactly what had happened between Harry, Ron, Hermione and Emily since the lovely Miss Lennon's appearance at the Weasley's party, but both were willing to bet that the game on Saturday was an important factor. Remus had decided to take the morning off work and go tell Harry, but Tonks was beginning to worry that this was getting much more serious than either of them realized.

Finally finding the floo powder, she threw a pinch in the flames, sticking her head in and calling "Number Three Godric's Hollow!" A whirl of emerald flames had her staring into Harry's sparsely, but tastefully decorated sitting room, neither of the boys in sight.

"Remus! Harry!" she called to them. A second later, the two were hurrying into the room, a newspaper clutched tightly in Harry's fist and his expression hard and angry. Remus looked a little flustered and unsure of himself, only smiling when he saw that it was Tonks.

"Are you alright?" Remus asked her, concerned.

"I just had a run in with the wicked witch herself," Tonks spat out, looking more towards Harry than Remus, trying to gauge the younger man's reaction. "She was looking for Remus."

Harry's frown deepened, and worry lines creased his forehead. "How would she even know where to find Remus? And what does she want with him anyway?"

Tonks huffed, throwing some ash into the air that she ignored. "She said she had something to discuss with him." She shot Remus a quizzical look. "Has she even met you before or talked to you?"

Remus shook his head, his mouth turning into a frown. "Not that I remember."

"Well, she knows who you are, of course," Harry said, frustrated, and Tonks saw him grip the paper in his hand tighter, if that was even possible. "I told her all about you…" Harry stood up, taking a deep breath and glancing away from them, the anger still evident on his face. "I told her everything."

"Well, let's not worry until we know what she's doing. After all, it could just be a harmless conversation trying to get me to help her with something, which, of course, I wouldn't," Remus reasoned.

"No, you don't understand," Harry cut in, turning back to them, his eyes blazing. "Nothing is 'harmless' with her right now," he explained. "She's already got me and Ron in way over our heads and I'll be damned if she's going to get you. Either of you," his eyes flicked to Tonks, who shot him a grateful smile.

"Harry," she reasoned, "she can't do anything to you anymore, she-"

"She already has!" Harry practically cried, holding out the newspaper in a frantic wave. "I know she was behind this, just like I know she's trying to get at you two to get to me." He took a deep breath, probably noticing their confused expressions. "Look, she only got Ron involved to get to me. Once she found out that it wasn't that simple, and that she might actually lose, she's starting to get others involved." He glanced down at the headlines again, his head shaking with disbelief. "She's completely insane if she thinks this is how it works."

"How what works?" Remus asked with a raised eyebrow.

Harry looked back at them, his face guarded now. "I don't want to get you two involved. It's bad enough I've got Ron and Hermione's futures on the line." He looked hard at Remus. "Just leave it alone."

Remus looked over at Tonks' head in the flames, both of them looking carefully to see if they were in agreement. Tonks prayed that she was wrong, but she could tell that Remus was thinking along the same lines as she was.

Turning back to Harry, his face was a mixture of disbelief and pity. "She can't actually think she's going to get you to marry her, does she?"

Harry shrugged. "I'm not sure exactly what her motives are for this particular ploy, but I'm not sharing them with either of you. The less involved you are, the faster this will be over for everyone."

Without another word, he swept out of the room leaving the slightly rumpled newspaper on the floor.

Remus, deciding it best not to follow him, turned back to his wife.

"You think so too, don't you?" he asked her. "You think Emily's blackmailing Harry into marriage?"

Tonks pursed her lips. "It's a definite possibility. Form what he's told us about her, she always did get what she wanted. And judging from how she was acting at the Weasley's party, our Mr. Potter was near the top of that list."

Remus still couldn't quite believe it. "How can she think that a relationship built on their past has any hope? Even if he was to forgive her and started seeing her willingly?" He looked hopelessly at his wife. "Does she think that love is a game?"

"She probably sees it more as a challenge," Tonks concluded. "Women like her get upset if they don't understand something and set out to conquer that mystery." Sighing, she smiled up at her husband. "You were quite a mystery for me, you know?"

"Oh, yeah?" Remus asked slyly, becoming more interested in the conversation. "How so?"

Tonks winked at him. "Why don't we leave Harry to wallow in his love life for a while and you come back her and I'll tell you?"

----

_A/n: Don't forget to review please!_


	17. You Seem to Be Confused

_a/n: I've never attempted this kind of (ahem) behavior with Ginny, but it was wicked fun to write, so I hope you get a little kick out of it._

**Chapter 17 – You Seem to Be Confused**

"_I think it's time we got this straight  
Let's sit and talk face to face  
There is no way you could mistake  
Him for your man - are you insane?"_

"_The Boy is Mine" by Brandy_

_----_

_Ginny hadn't exactly been looking for him, but she wasn't disappointed when she found him alone in the backyard, thirty minutes after Tonks had thrown her bouquet and the newlyweds had retreated for their honeymoon. The decorations were starting to come down after the celebration, but most of the guests had retreated inside with the darkening sky._

_Harry, however, was standing silently near the small lake behind the Weasley home, gazing up at the stars as they began to appear in the night sky._

_She walked up next to him, unsure of what to say, now that she could say it._

"_I'm sorry I didn't tell you I was coming," he said out of nowhere, his voice quiet as he continued to look to the sky._

"_It's alright," she admitted, though it really wasn't._

"_Remus said he would wait till my training was over, but I knew he didn't really want to." Ginny turned enough to see him smiling slightly, still gazing at the sky. "And, of course, he needed another Marauder at his wedding…or at least someone to stand in for who really should have been there."_

_Ginny's eyes followed his and found the Sirius constellation in the sky, twinkling in moonlight. She felt a few tears gather in the back of her eyes, but refused to let him see them, even though he seemed determined not to look at her._

"_I'm glad you came," she admitted. "We needed you here….Remus did, I mean."_

_Harry snorted a laugh, shaking his head as he finally looked down from the heavens and over at her. "Well, he won't anymore. Tonks'll take care of him."_

_Ginny forced herself to smile and nod. They were looking at each other now, finally. He looked a lot older than she remembered. _

"_I'm leaving tonight," he finally said, sounding slightly regretful. "I've got to get back to work."_

"_In America," she nodded, sounding interested. "I understand."_

_There was an awkward silence as they stood three feet apart, neither quite sure what the other was thinking._

_Finally, Harry took a few steps forward and leaned down, kissing Ginny quickly on the cheek. "It was great to see you again, Ginny."_

_And just like that, he was gone again. Nothing more said or done. No more talk of the past they both regretted. No more talk of how both of them had moved on to other people._

_No more talk of how much it still hurt._

----

Ron blinked, unsure of what he had just heard.

"Excuse me?" he attempted.

The medwitch in front of him looked a little unsure of herself, a fact that only made Ron more nervous. "It's a repressive gene found in some muggleborn witches and wizards who have ancestors that were wizards. Most of the time it never manifests ever in the person's lifetime, but it seems with Mrs. Weasley's case, her drain of raw magical power made the gene manifest to almost full strength."

Ron raised a disbelieving eyebrow. "And this goes on for how long?"

She shrugged. "No one can really be certain, but probably not long. Most likely it will taper off as she begins to regain her natural power back again."

Still looking doubtful, Ron glanced at Hermione's door and then back to the nervous intern. Raising an eyebrow, he attempted to make himself as intimidating as possible, hoping she wasn't lying to him. "Prophetic dreams?"

She nodded nervously.

"Alternate realities?"

She shrugged, in an apologetic sort of way. "We've been monitoring her brainwaves for the past twelve hours. There's too much magic involved for it to be anything else."

Ron wanted to sneer at her, and bit back a comment about his past dealings with Divination, but settled on taking a deep breath to calm down.

"Right," he nodded curtly. "I'll tell her."

Her whirled away, heading for Hermione's room again. The medwitch's voice stopped him once again.

"Remember that they aren't all true!"

He swiveled around to face her, confused, but she looked even more frightened before at his expression.

"T-the dreams," she stuttered, clutching her clipboard. "They're not all true."

A single raised eyebrow from him sent her scurrying back down the hall, unwilling to say more.

Shrugging again, Ron finally went back in to see his wife and newborn daughter.

----

It was a grand thing in life to finally be getting on to something new.

Ginny Weasley never thought she would admit it, but she really loved not having a boyfriend.

The last of old mementos from her "Edward Era" were unceremoniously thrown into the box, clattering together and probably breaking, but she really could care less at the moment. Her room felt remarkably clean, fresh and new.

She skipped happily down the stairs, passing Riley who was cleaning up the remains of their late breakfast and watching Ginny with an amused expression.

"You're too bloody cheerful for someone who just went through a breakup and gave up a very big diamond ring," Riley commented, flicking her wand to clean off the countertops and table.

Ginny dumped the box on the porch, making a mental note to take it out to the trash later, and glanced over at Riley with a smirk. "You know, last night was actually the first time he made a decent proposal, one that mentioned love and all that shite. You think I should be feeling bad?"

Riley scoffed. "Yeah right! That boy's free now to go off and find some blond pureblood with magically enhanced features that will look good beside him in a thirty foot painting for their new house."

Ginny shot her a glare.

"Not that you wouldn't look nice in a thirty foot painting, of course, Gin," she teased, both of them heading back up to their room.

Ginny grinned, keeping one eyebrow raised. "Right."

They laughed together most of the afternoon (they hadn't woken up till noon) and were just planning on what sounded to be a fabulous night out, when a knock banged through their house.

Annoyed at the interruption, but pleased that whoever it was, was going to get to see her decked out in her evening clothes that Riley had picked out, Ginny hurried downstairs to answer the door.

She would never admit to anyone how thrilled she was to see Harry Potter standing on her doorstep, looking nervous, but happy to see her.

Of course, she hid this feeling quite cleverly and gave him a warm smile. "Hey."

"Hey."

He glanced up and down her attire, a halter black dress complimented with a dark green jacket, and she saw him force his smile to stay.

"I didn't want to interrupt, I'm sure Edward's got big plans with you tonight."

"What did you need then?" she asked smoothly, avoiding answering his unspoken question. When he really asked, she might tell him about Edward.

He looked back up into her eyes and she bit down her desire to shiver.

"You trust me, right?"

His voice was lower and he had taken a step towards her. Ginny's eyes darted quickly towards the stairs, thinking he was trying to keep Riley from hearing, wherever she was.

Locking eyes with him again, she nodded. "Of course."

He took a deep breath, taking a moment to choose his words carefully. "You remember that woman from the party, Emily?"

"Yes." Ginny had tried not to sound jealous or bitter saying it, but she knew she was.

"She's probably going to try and talk to you tonight or tomorrow and get you to say something or tell you things that aren't true…" He looked almost anguished now as he reached forward, taking her hand gently. "Promise me you won't listen to anything she says."

Ginny frowned, confused. "I don't understand."

"You trust me more than her, right?"

"Of course," she said matter-of-factly.

"Then, as melodramatic as this sounds, believe me when I say you shouldn't believe anything she says."

Still confused, Ginny opened her mouth to ask more, but he was already heading back out the door. She hadn't realized until then that he had come up right in front of her, but he was now back out on the doorstep.

"I've got to get back to the hospital and try to talk to Ron," he said, his whole demeanor changing from how it had been seconds ago as he warned her away from Emily Lennon. He smiled back at her. "You look really great tonight, Gin."

And just like that, he was walking away from her again, disappearing just past their property line right as she snapped out of her surprised stupor enough to look confused and anxious all at the same time.

Had that really been Harry? He didn't usually act so mysterious around people, but he did look like he was in a hurry. Urgent, nervous and in a hurry….she never thought she'd see him like that again, but she didn't like it one bit.

A ferocious growl escaped her lips and she slammed the door, pulling her jacket off as she ran back up the stairs.

"Change of plans, Riley," she shouted, coming back into the room to see Riley applying the last of her own make-up.

"Because of the illustrious Mr. Potter?" she said, not sounding surprised.

Ginny pulled out her beat up pair of jeans and one of Ron's old Chudley Cannon t-shirts. "Something's got him scared," she muttered, pulling off the clinging dress and exchanging it for the more comfortable wardrobe, "Or rather, some_one_."

"Ah, now this is fun," Riley agreed, finding a pair of jeans for herself and throwing Ginny a knowing wink. "It's been a while since I've gotten in a good catfight anyway."

----

"I knew they couldn't all be true," Hermione said softly, her exhaustion evident in her voice as she held their newborn daughter in her arms, having just finished feeding her. "In one of them it was me who died….but in another one, you died."

Ron didn't enjoy how casual Hermione referred to her dreams. Even though not all of them were true, Ron had dealt with Harry enough to know not to take all of Divination too lightly. Especially if it was coming from his own wife.

"Did they say when they would stop?" Hermione whispered, her eyes fluttering closed as she fought to remain awake. The only times she had awaken in the past few hours, she needed to feed the baby, and it was exhausting her even more. Her strange dreams make her sleep very unrestful, but unfortunately she was unable to take dreamless sleep potion while nursing.

"Probably once your magic starts coming back," Ron whispered, leaning over to take the child out of her arms and gently kiss her forehead. "Rest, love. I'll still be here when you wake up."

Hermione smiled as his lips touched her forehead and she drifted instantly to sleep, her breathing slowing and her body relaxing into the soft bed.

Ron stepped back from the bed, carefully cradling his daughter as he sat back down in his usual chair, taking a moment again to study the newest member of their family.

Ron was not a woman by any means, but he couldn't help but melt at the sight of his daughter and "ooo" and "ahh" at her perfect little features. Wisps of red hair flew out form underneath her newborn cap, curling a bit on the ends and complimenting her fair, white skin. Her lashes were long and dark red, matching the color of her tiny mouth. He gave into the temptation of reaching up and sticking his pinky in her open palm, once again marveling at her finger's reflexive curl around it.

He and Hermione had not had much time to sit down and just be together with their daughter (the medwizards seemed to think it wasn't "good" for Hermione to talk while she was nursing), but they had both agreed on a name early on, one that had stuck through the last five months of the pregnancy. They had never told anyone else the name, and agreed that they wanted to announce it together. They had done the same with a boy's name as well, but for some reason, the girl's name they had chosen had been easy for both of them.

Gazing down at his sleeping daughter, Ron smiled whispering her name only to her and loving the fact that she gripped his finger tighter as he spoke.

----

It didn't take them long to find each other. Emily had obviously been searching for Ginny just as much as Ginny had been searching for her, but it was amazing that through all of that, Emily still had the gall to think that Ginny was going to listen to her.

Riley and Ginny spotted her walking through the tables at a local wizarding nightclub called "The Lock Ness". Emily had smiled happily upon seeing them, waving like an old friend and making a beeline to where they stood by the bar.

"Ginny! How lovely to meet you at last! You know, Harry speaks of no one else!"

Ginny raised a doubtful eyebrow. "Funny. He never mentioned you until tonight."

"You've seen him tonight then, lovely! I was trying to find him myself. You know how hard it is to keep track of men." Her false laugh would have been convincing had she not dramatically spilled some of her firewhiskey on Ginny at the same time.

"Oh dear, silly me!"

Ginny batted her hand away, ignoring the spill, and crossing her arms in front of her chest. "What do you want to find Harry for? And for that matter, what did you want to find me for? Harry said you would be looking for me."

Riley stood behind Ginny, loudly flirting with the bartender, but paying enough attention to the conversation to know when Ginny would need help.

If Ginny needed help.

"That man!" Emily said dramatically, smiling sweetly. "I swear, he'd loose his head if it wasn't attached." She took a sip from her goblet and looked back at Ginny. "You know about the engagement, of course. We were supposed to meet tonight to finalize the plans for tomorrow, but he had some pressing issues and left without even grabbing his tux from my wardrobe! Imagine that!?"

Ginny felt the ground drop out from under her as she heard the word "engagement". Her heart dropped to the bottom of her toes and for a moment she couldn't breathe.

"E-excuse me?" She finally got out, feeling a bit dizzy.

Emily looked triumphant, but Ginny couldn't bring herself to snap out of it. Luckily, Riley was there for a reason.

"Oh, I'm sure someone like Harry Potter would never be as short-sided as that, dearie," Riley said loudly, coming up beside Ginny and looking sweetly over at Emily. "Better drink a few more pints before you go to bed with another man and wake up thinking you're engaged. You could end up with someone like him." She jerked a finger at the barman who glanced at them, wriggled some boney fingers and winked, demonstrating that not only was he going on at least seventy years old, but was also still in the market for a wife.

As she pointed, she leaned over to Ginny. "Remember what Harry said, Ginny. You know better than you listen to trash like her."

Emily looked in disgust at the barman and turned to Riley with a withering look. "Is that right? And who are you supposed to be?"

But before Riley could even say another word, Ginny had brought her fist up and nailed it right into Emily's nose, sending the shocked witch back several paces and making her drop her drink as she held her hands up to hold in the blood that was now flowing down her face.

Riley just looked approvingly over at Ginny, who was now fuming at Emily.

"Don't you dare think that you're good enough for him!"

Emily seemed too shocked to say anything, but Ginny was just getting started.

"You aren't even fit for him to spit on," she said menacingly.

Emily's eyes widened at that statement and from out of nowhere she lunged at Ginny, trying to grab at her hair. But Ginny was pumped of adrenaline now and remembered her self-defense training, bringing her arm up to block Emily's long fingers and using her leg to knock her feet out from under her, Emily's fancy dress shoes causing her to slam to the ground, breathless. Riley stood off to the side, containing her laughter at seeing Ginny actually hit someone, and warding off anyone who tried to interfere with the fight.

Ginny took a step back, noticing the blood on her arms from Emily's hand and wiping it on her shirt casually while still gazing down at Emily.

"I don't know who you are or what you think you can get out of Harry, but I'll give you a clue: No one beats him. Not Dark Lords, Ministers of Magic or ex-girlfriends."

Emily managed to start pulling herself up, backing away a bit out of Ginny's reach. She even had the nerve to smirk a bit through the blood still on her face. "Oh but I'm much more than just Harry's ex-girlfriend, Ginervra, didn't you know? Your precious Harry and I were engaged to be married." She smirked at Ginny's loathing look. "An engagement which, while technically not 'on' at the moment, will become active again tomorrow, whether he really remembers he loves you or not."

This time both Riley and Ginny jumped her.

And unfortunately, no one was there to hold anyone back.

----

_a/n: please review!_

_yes, you will find out what Ron and Hermione have named their daughter in due time :D_


	18. Don't Stop Here

_a/n: Sorry again for the incredibly long wait. School is becoming more of a burden than I want it to be. But I will NOT abandon this story…it's too much fun to write :D_

**Chapter 18 – Don't Stop Here**

"_Even the best fall down sometime  
Even the wrong words seem to rhyme  
Out of the doubt that fills my mind  
I somehow find you and I collide."_

"_Collide" by Howie Day_

----

Ron seemed very reluctant as he looked at Hermione, one eyebrow raised in a form of disbelief.

Hermione simply sighed with sleepiness and continued to hold her arms out.

Eventually, Ron managed to give up the sleeping baby he held in his hands and take a few steps back from the hospital bed, now looking at his wife and daughter with anxiety.

"I still don't like it," he reminded her carefully.

Rolling her eyes, Hermione let out a tired laugh. "And I won't like the grief that I will receive ten years from now if you don't go."

Ron glanced towards the door where his broom and bag were propped against the wall.

Looking back at Hermione, he couldn't believe the words that came out of his mouth. "It's just a game."

This time Hermione laughed a bit louder and pulled her daughter closed to her. "Right, and I'm just a muggle-born." She tilted her head towards him and they just looked at each other for a moment. "Come here." She motioned with her arms.

Ron immediately moved forward, gathering her into a careful hug, but holding tight enough that she knew he meant it.

"I'm alright, the baby is alright." She pulled back and looked at him seriously. "I'm just going to be sitting in this hospital bed for the next week. You need to go to that game."

Heaving an almost resigned sigh, Ron bit his bottom lip. "I'll come right back when it's over."

Hermione blushed a bit as she smiled. "I'd like that."

Leaning forward, Ron gave her a long, deep kiss, the kind they hadn't shared for several days, and he felt her melt under his touch. As he pulled back, he leaned down and kissed their sleeping daughter softly on the cheek.

"I love you," he whispered to them both, his eyes traveling from the newborn to Hermione.

"Love you…" Hermione's reply was very soft and sincere.

As he went over to the door, slinging his pack on his shoulders and picking up his broom, he stopped short, suddenly turning around and looking at Hermione seriously.

"Have you said her name to her yet?" he asked softly.

Hermione frowned a bit. "No…why?"

"Watch," Ron grinned, walking back towards the bed and leaning down to whisper in his daughter's ear, making sure Hermione could still see her face.

"I love you, Gracie," he said in a barely-there voice.

The tiny mouth curved into a slight smile and Grace's hands gripped her blanket just a bit tighter.

----

The worst day of Harry's life dawned far too cheerful.

A few birds that were singing outside of his bedroom window scattered away quickly as an old textbook came flying out of the open window.

Harry rubbed the remaining sleep out of his eyes, grateful that the birds were gone, but now remembering exactly why this was going to be the worst day of his life.

His eyes found the clock on the wall and he moved a little faster as he saw it was already eight and the game started at ten.

Unable to find Ron last night at the hospital, Harry had returned home, deciding that he might be able to catch Ron at the stadium before the game. He had convinced Draco to come with him to the game and was just now remembering that the Malfoy heir would be showing up at his doorstep at any minute.

A ring through the house announced that Draco was on time, as always, and Harry, in a furry of clothes, pulled on his last shoe as he hurried down the stairs, flinging open the door quickly before making his way into the kitchen without even so much as a "Hello".

"What happened to your alarm clock?" Draco queried, following Harry into the kitchen and looking amused. "Did it break?"

Harry shook his head as he filled the coffee maker with some mixture and turned it on. "No, it got hit with an old transfiguration textbook."

Draco seemed to find nothing unusual about this and sat down at Harry's table. "Lupin said he and Tonks were going to the game as well. I'm sure Weasllette is going to be there. Wanna tell me why you're dragging me into this?"

Harry managed to look amused as he poured himself some coffee. "Quidditch, Draco? You would turn down free tickets to a pre-game for the Quidditch World Cup?"

"Obviously I didn't turn them down, Potter, which is why I'm here." He accepted some coffee from Harry. "I want to know your reason for my being here."

Harry let the coffee wake him up a bit before he replied. "It's kind of a long story. Mostly, I guess, I don't want Emily to get any more of my friends involved."

"So you're saying I'm not one of your friends?" Draco said with a chuckle.

"No," Harry drained the last of his coffee. "I'm saying you're one of the friends I don't care the most about." He smirked over at Draco. "How do you deal with that?"

Draco put his empty cup on the counter and started towards the door. "I remind myself that I hate you too."

Harry rolled his eyes in exasperation and followed Draco to the door, grabbing a light cloak and locking the door behind them.

----

Ginny wailed at the sight in the mirror, looking horrified at herself.

"I can't go out in public like this!" She practically cried, turning around to face Riley. "Can't you do any more?"

The fight the previous night had seemed like a good idea at the time, and even right afterwards when they had left Emily staggering home and had bought a round for everyone in the club, it wasn't that big of a deal.

But now dealing with a black eye, bruised arms and a crick in her neck, Ginny might have rethought her decision.

"If you want to get rid of the black eye you have to drink the potion, Gin. I can't do that with my wand. Same goes for the bruises." Riley looked perfect, as always. She had downed several of her homemade healing potions that Ginny always swore she would never consume, and they had done their job, leaving her with no signs of the fight the previous night.

Ginny pouted childishly and turned back to the mirror, putting more make up in her hands as she attempted the "muggle remedy", as Riley called it, of covering up her bruises.

"It won't work!" Riley called out to her, disappearing back into their bedroom.

Ginny gave another cry of frustration before charming her face clean of makeup and trudging downstairs to find a clothespin to put on her nose as she drank Riley's potions.

----

Harry wasn't that surprised to run into Emily, but he couldn't keep down the bout of chuckles that rose as he saw her appearance.

"You look like you got hit by a truck," he said evenly, continuing to walk towards his seat in the stadium as she came up along side of him.

"Or something to that effect," Emily said, her voice a bit more shaky than usual. But she managed a sweet smile anyways. "In a hurry, dear?"

"The game's about to start," Harry snapped, feeling out of temper with her already. Looking for Ron had been a lost cause from the start. The fact that this whole day could be a lot less stressful for both of them was obviously not enough for Harry to locate Ron in the crowd of the Cannon locker rooms.

A few more flights of stairs landed him on the upper balcony, a flash of Draco's platinum hair leading him quickly to his seat.

A glance behind him also told him that Emily was gone again.

Good riddance, he thought, sitting down next to Draco and watching as the starting players entered the field.

----

"I see him! Look, look!"

Riley handed the omnioculars over to Ginny pointing towards the other side of the stadium near the head box at the top.

Ginny focused on the area she was pointing and got a nice view of Draco Malfoy before she moved next to him and found Harry.

He looked in the same state as he had last night: nervous, depressed and very anxious about something. The roar of the opening play sounded around them and the players began zooming across the field, but Ginny paid them no mind. She zoomed in closer to his face and saw him focusing fiercely on one of the players.

A zoom out and closer inspection told her he was glaring at Ron who was poised evenly before the Cannon's three hoops.

"Well, he looks pissed at Ron for some reason," Ginny said offhandedly, handing Riley back her omnioculars so she could watch the game. She blew out a short sigh and leaned her chin on one hand. "I never know what's going on."

----

Hermione adjusted the volume of the wireless a bit lower as she saw Gracie drift off to sleep, her own eyes feeling very heavy, but determined to listen to the entire game.

----

Emily watched Harry and Ron closely as the game went into hour number two. The Cannon's standby Seeker, Stempski, wasn't doing that bang up of a job. Twice already the Wasps' seeker had been close to catching the snitch, only to be stopped by the Cannon's beaters sending blugers his way.

Weasley, however, was playing in top form….most of the time. She could see him loose confidence at different times and even purposely miss catching a few goals, which seemed to aggravate his teammates to no end.

Harry, however, seemed much more calm and collected than Emily knew he should have been. She had made sure that Harry wasn't about to talk to Ron before the start of the game, but could there possibly have been some other reason for his cool behavior?

Another goal scored by the Wasps brought her attention back to the game and she smiled at the Keeper's obvious cursing as he flew back around to get into position.

Ah yes, she thought, the cat is in the bag.

----

Three hours in, and Harry knew he was starting to sweat.

The Cannons were down by over 100 points, Stempski acting like a house elf on a broom and Ron missing every other goal, seemingly, on purpose. Harry saw the exhaustion and disbelief on the Cannon team's faces as they struggled to understand what was wrong with their coach. Ron had so far called no time outs and was ignoring any comments made to him by his teammates.

Somehow, someone was going to have to get to him, and fast.

Harry's time was running out.

----

"I can't take this any more," Ginny said abruptly after Ron finally decided to block a goal, raising a rousing roar of cheers throughout the stadium from the Cannon's fans. She stood, grabbing her cloak. "I've just got to go talk to him."

Riley gave her a doubtful look. "What makes you think he's going to tell you anything? Besides, he's with Malfoy. I didn't even go to the same school as the guy, but I already know he hates my guts."

Ginny calmly looked back at Riley and replied, "He'll talk to me."

"Fine," Riley got up as well, "but if you're not making me stay here, I'm leaving too."

----

"Harry, look….over there."

Draco handed Harry his omnioculars and pointed towards the other side of the stadium in the crowd. After a bit of searching, he found Ginny and Riley, both of them sitting calmly in their seats. Riley had never been the biggest Quidditch fan and it showed on her plainly uninterested face.

Suddenly, he saw Ginny stand up and start to go, exchanging a few words with Riley before they both left for the exit.

Throwing inhibition to the wind, Harry shoved the omnioculars into Draco's hands and rushed back down the stairs, painfully ignoring another cheer from the Wasps' fans.

----

Ron let another goal get through, blinking back the looks of disappointment and even anger from his teammates.

How in the world was he doing this to them?

He glanced out onto his players, most of them standby teammates, the prime team either sick or out of the country, all except for him.

He thought of his first game playing, when he had conned himself into the game, taking out Daughterly and thereby saving the game for all of them.

He thought of the thrill of victory when he realized that even though he was just a stand-by, he had actually done it and he had actually accomplished something.

He thought of the disappointment on all of his team's faces as they realized they had lost the first game they actually got to play in.

He thought of Hermione.

He thought of Gracie.

He blocked the next goal.

----

She ran into him quickly.

Quite literally.

"Oh, err…sorry Gin." Harry reached a hand down to help her up from the ground, her face red with embarrassment as the people around the concession stands gave them both funny looks.

"Here, let's go out here."

His hand didn't let go once she was on her feet. He pulled her out into the sunlight outside of the stadium and away from the prying eyes of the witches and wizards who were stuffing their faces on overpriced food.

"Sorry about that, again," he said, looking a bit embarrassed. "I guess I wasn't watching where I was going."

"Me either," she replied, managing a smile and noticing that Riley had "conveniently" stopped at an ice cream booth and had left them both alone.

They stood in an awkward silence for a few moments, both of them trying to avoid one another's eyes without being too obvious.

"I hear congratulations are in order," Ginny said carefully.

"What?" That seemed to have gotten his attention and he looked her right in the eyes.

"Congratulations." She said it firmer this time, gauging his reaction carefully. "Don't you like to be congratulated?"

"Well, who doesn't? But most of the time I like it better if I know what I'm being congratulated for."

Ginny felt her heart slow down a bit. "You're getting married I hear."

His eyes narrowed. "I'm guessing you were the one who met up with Emily last night and put those smashing colors on her face."

For a moment she thought he was going to be angry with her, but then he smiled.

"I should have guessed it was you."

"So you've seen her today then?" Ginny asked reluctantly.

"Unfortunately, yes." He did look apologetic for that fact.

"But you never answered my question." She pressed. "For some reason she has it in her head that you two are getting married." This time her eyes narrowed up at him.

He looked nervous again. "Does she?"

"You don't seem to be disputing it, Mr. Potter," she said warningly. "Despite that I am your best friend and should be the first one you inform of this, I'll add the fact that everything I've heard about this woman labels her as a complete lunatic."

"If she's a lunatic, why do you believe what she says anyway?" Harry shot back.

"Well why don't you just give me an answer then!?" she practically shouted at him.

They stood nose to nose for several moments before Harry finally took an exhausted breath and backed away. "Just stay out of it, Ginny."

Ginny shook her head sadly. "You know, Harry, you've told me that before. You told me that after Dumbledore's death, during the summer of my sixth year and even after you had completely defeated Voldemort." She walked up to him, getting dangerously close for her own good, but wanting him to get the point. "It didn't work then and it won't work now."

And with a flick of her hair, she was walking away from him again, enjoying the fact that this time it was on her own terms.

She was so filled with anger and frustration that she didn't even hear the gigantic roar that rose from the stadium, signaling the end of the game.

----

Draco was the first to find him, much calmer and collected than any of the other Cannon's fans, working his way through the crowd, smiling at Harry in a suspicious way.

"You think they're happy?" Draco shouted at Harry, trying to be heard over the Cannon's fans.

Harry, in his own little world of private joy himself, just smiled. "How was the last ten minutes I missed?"

"Incredible, I'm not going to lie," Draco responded, leaning up against the wall where Harry stood. "Something just clicked with Weasley all of a sudden and when he got back into the grove, there was nothing stopping the rest of the team. Especially Stempski. He snatched that snitch like it was on a string." Draco shook his head in disbelief. "Who knew so many stand-by players could get through a game like this?"

"Mr. Potter knew, didn't you Harry?"

Both men turned to see Emily walking up to them, bruise-free now and smiling much more cheerfully than she ought to be for just having lost her bet with Harry.

Neither of the men said anything, but Harry could tell that Draco was having a hard time keeping his mouth shut.

Emily walked right up to Harry, pulling out an envelope and handing it to him. "I misjudged Ron, it seems," she admitted. "That, or you just got lucky."

"Probably a bit of both," Harry admitted, sliding the envelope quickly into his pocket, knowing that it was the letter she had promised him if the Cannon's won. "But I'm not complaining."

She gave him a sort of sly look. "It was quite the romantic interlude, though, wasn't it Harry? Did it ever bring you back to the old times?"

"More often than I would have liked," he admitted dryly. "I'm heartbroken that it's over."

She smiled at his sarcastic comment. "Oh, but it's not over, not yet, at least."

Harry frowned and felt Draco put a hand on his shoulder, keeping him from charging Emily which, it looked like, he had been about to do. "What?"

She pouted. "'I need you. I'm coming there now.'…"

She waited as the words sunk in and the truth dawned on him.

Sighing, she laid a hand gently on his arm. "Such a shame for such a good person as Ronald Weasley to be betrayed by none other than his best friend and his wife…"

And like that, she was gone, leaving Harry in a shocked and heart pounding pose that Draco finally managed to snap him out of.

"Potter…Potter…Blast it, Harry snap out of it! What the bloody hell is going on?"

"Hermione's note…" he stuttered. "She's got Hermione's note."

----

_a/n: Remember when Emily took it in chapter 7?? AhHA!_

_I chose the name Gracie for Ben Fold's song "Gracie". It's really cute, go listen to it. I'll probably have it as my heading song for an upcoming chapter._


	19. Are We Having Fun Yet?

**Chapter 19 – Are We Having Fun Yet?**

"_It's not like you didn't know that  
I said I love you and I swear I still do  
It's not like you to say sorry  
I was waiting on a different story."_

_- "How You Remind Me" by Nickleback_

_----_

"_Too big. Too flashy. Too…"_

"_Too expensive," Ron said with a shudder, placing the ring back down. _

_Harry picked up another one, examining it for a moment before putting it back. "I think the problem is that I'm not used to jewelry having anything to do with Hermione. The thought can't register."_

_Ron gave him a punch in his arm before turning back to a new set of rings._

_Rubbing his arm, Harry went and sat across from Ron, pretending to examine more rings. "All I'm saying is that it's got to be some special type of ring for her. She won't just fit in with the same old diamond."_

_Ron looked up at him with a wicked grin. "I know."_

_Harry gave him a sly look. "Yes, I'm sure you do."_

_Accepting the challenge, Ron crossed his arms ruefully, smiling over at Harry. "And you're the expert on this, yes? Tell me, how many people have you proposed to in your life?"_

"_Is that 'how many people I have wanted to propose to' or 'how many people have I actually proposed to'?"_

_Ron looked confused. "Is there a difference?"_

"_Unfortunately, yes. But that is beside the point. The point is that we might have to visit a few more stores before we actually find something."_

"_I'm not done here," Ron reminded him, going back to examining more rings. "And you promised me a whole day. Sit your arse down and help me."_

_Harry reluctantly began to examine more rings that the jeweler brought over. After a few moments of silence, Ron spoke up again._

"_You never answered my question, you know."_

"_I was hoping you would be your ignorant self and not notice," Harry admitted, holding up a ring for Ron to examine._

"_Too small. Ignorant self?"_

"_Usually I can slip stuff like that past you," Harry admitted, pulling out another one for Ron to judge. "Hermione must be rubbing off on you."_

"_Kind of how the silver is rubbing off of that ring onto your finger," Ron commented, laughing as Harry quickly put the ring back. "Should I be taking that as a compliment?"_

"_If you like," Harry agreed._

"_So tell me." Ron opened a new case with ten more rings. They were all too large._

"_Which one, the first or second?"_

"_Well, why not tell me who you would have wanted to propose to."_

_Harry held up another ring. "Thought that one would have been obvious."_

"_Oooo…I like that one," Ron commented, reaching forward to try to take it out of Harry's hand, but Harry pulled it back. _

"_Too late, I bought it four years ago."_

_Ron gave him a surprised look. "You're serious?"_

"_Unfortunately," Harry commented wirily as he put the ring back in his pocket. "More unfortunate than that is the fact that I doubt I'm ever going to use it now."_

_A sort of pitiful look crossed Ron's face. "What makes you think so?"_

_Harry shrugged. "Just a hunch."_

"_Well if you want me to take it off your hands right now-"_

"_Not a chance," Harry said too quickly._

_Ron gave a satisfied chuckle, going back to examine more rings. "That's what I though."_

_----_

Remus was the first to figure out where he was. But there was no real surprise there. Next to Ron Weasley, Remus Lupin had the confidence of Harry Potter.

Remus stopped short as he went up the aisle, frowning as he saw Harry intently looking at a number of books, flipping through them quickly before returning them to the shelf. He heard a noise behind him and turned to see Draco had caught up with him and was looking at Harry with confusion.

"What in Merlin's name is he doing?" Draco whispered, sounding just as confused as Remus felt.

"I haven't the foggiest," Remus admitted. "This was just a stop on the way to his house, but I guess we've found him already…"

"A library?" Draco sounded suspicious. "What's a bloke doing in a library at a time like this."

"There are many different answers to that question, Draco," Remus admitted, motioning Draco to follow him as he started towards Harry, "but the best one, I'm sure, is yet to come."

The walked nonchalantly up to Harry who was so involved in his latest book that he didn't notice them till Remus' shadow covered the page. He jumped slightly, looking over at them with an innocent face.

"Yes?"

"Extra credit?" Remus questioned, motioning towards Harry's book.

He closed the book quickly and returned it to the shelf, starting to scan for others. "I'm thinking of taking up Chinese. Mandarin or whatever."

"Language?" Draco asked.

"Language, lifestyle…." Harry wasn't paying much attention to them, despite their close proximity and picked another book. "Has excellent weather during April."

Remus frowned. "What does?"

"China."

Draco blew out a frustrated sigh. "Potter, you're not making any sense."

Harry closed his latest book with a snap and finally turned to them again. "China. Beautiful weather. Rather cheap housing expenses."

"Since when do you need cheap housing expenses?" Remus queried.

"I'm just saying, is all," Harry went back to another book.

Remus and Draco turned to each other, exchanging "he's-whacked-out" looks and then turning back to Harry.

"Hermione's worried about you."

Remus' statement prompted a dark look from Harry. "Why?"

"Harry, no one's seen you for the past 12 hours, not since you ditched me at the Quidditch pitch." Draco was getting frustrated, but Remus was just getting annoyed when Harry didn't bother reply, just turned back to another book.

"Harry," he grabbed the younger man's arm and turned him to face them. "Running off to China isn't going to fix anything."

Harry frowned in confusion. "Too close? I was thinking New Zealand, but they speak English there."

"What's that got to do with anything?" Draco snapped.

"Obviously it's harder to blend in when every English speaking person, and quite a few others, in the world knows your name." Harry said 'matter-of-factly'.

"So you're blending in in China where you can't even speak the language?"

"I was learning."

"Enough!"

Remus hushed them both and when they turned to him, he fixed his gaze on Harry. He didn't say anything, just stared at him for a few moments before Harry finally crumbled and put the books back on the shelf.

"Well, it was just a back up plan," he admitted, letting them lead him out of the library.

----

Ron had wanted to stay in his bed that morning. It had been warm and cozy under the covers, though not as cozy as it could have been had Hermione not still been in the hospital. But after a day like yesterday, Sunday press conferences were going to be whacked out to the hilt, especially if Emily went through on her promise and handed someone that letter.

As he dragged his body out of bed and started getting ready for the day, he was surprised by how calm he was. He finally realized that it was because the people he cared about the most already knew the truth…and everyone else would just have to deal with it.

After all, there was anything he could do to change it now.

Hermione knew, and that was what mattered.

Harry knew as well, but frankly, Ron didn't care about seeing his best friend ever again.

That thought was still firm in his head when he entered the Cannon's stadium and found Harry waiting there, sitting patiently and looking as innocent as he had the day they had first meant. But it didn't mean anything to Ron anymore. And according to Harry's actions, it didn't mean anything to Harry either.

So Ron resolutely ignored any and all of Harry's words as he swiftly walked by him and entered his office, shutting Harry out behind him.

----

The more colorful curses that Sirius had let slip around Harry were now slipping rapidly out of Harry's mouth as he saw Ron's office door slam and lock, and Harry's composure fell a bit as he kicked a nearby wall.

"Bloody Weasley!" he cried, holding his bruised toe and hopping on one foot as Draco and Remus appeared from around the corner.

"Why didn't you just shove the letter in his face?" Draco asked, indicating the fabled blackmail letter that Harry had clenched in his fist.

"I'm not just handing this over." Harry stated forcefully. "He needs to know what it cost me." He shivered involuntarily. "Almost being married to that woman…ugh." Harry spat into the ground, as if there was a bad taste in his mouth and started out of the locked room and into the brightness of the Quidditch field.

"Let's get out of here. I'm obviously not going to get anywhere with Ron and there will be reporters here soon." Harry led the three of them out of the stadium and towards the apparition point.

"What are you going to do now?" Remus asked. "Understand that China is still out of the question."

Harry gave him a withered look. "Look, I need to go see Hermione alone and explain. She's overwhelmed enough with everything that's been going on."

"What are we supposed to do?" Draco asked. "I, for one, am not inclined to leave you alone again." He turned to Remus. "Did we check him for sharp objects?"

"Enough!" Harry said, exasperated. "You two go find Ginny. She needs to hear a few things as well."

And with that, he took a single step back and disapperated with a pop.

----

"He did WHAT??" Ginny cried.

Remus took an involuntary step backwards, not inclined to face the youngest Weasley's wrath. Draco, on the other hand, didn't seem the least bit intimidated.

"Chill, Weaslette," Draco continued smoothly. "It's not as if he doesn't know how to handle himself around her."

By now Ginny was pacing frantically around the room, as if trying to find something to maim. "If I ever get my hands on that little bi-"

"Let's take it one step at a time, first," Remus bravely stepped forward and tried to remain calm. "Harry's going to be in hot water with Ron if Emily actually sent him that letter."

Ginny scoffed, unconvinced. "Even Ron isn't dense enough to think that Hermione and Harry would do anything like that."

"At this moment we wouldn't be so sure. Ron might take any opportunity to get mad at Harry, even if it is for something that's practically improbable."

Finally standing still again, Ginny looked at the two of them curiously. "Any reason why I am now getting involved with this? Harry hasn't exactly been my best friend the past week."

"Obviously explained by what he was trying to do with Emily," Draco reminded her.

"You have to admit that if Harry hadn't figured out a way to get that letter, Ron's career, and possibly Hermione's as well, would have been seriously compromised by the pres conference this morning."

They all looked at the clock at the same time, seeing that the press conference was well underway by now.

"Look, Ron's not going to be home for at least a half hour," Draco said to Ginny. "Harry's trying to figure something out with Hermione right now, and five heads are better than two." He motioned with his head towards the fireplace.

Ginny gave them both a doubtful look.

"You're his best friend, Ginny," Remus said in all seriousness. "He needs you now more than ever."

----

"I just think it's better that he knows the exact truth!" Harry tried again, pleading nervously to Hermione who sat in a nearby chair, Gracie's bassinet by her chair, both of them looking exhausted from the trip back home for the hospital.

"The truth?? Harry do you have any idea how upset Ron is with you right now?"

"For no bloody reason," Harry murmured under his breath.

"Merlin, you'd swear it was fourth year with the both of you all over again." Hermione gave him a scolding look.

"Well, this isn't all my fault, remember. You're not exactly at the pinnacle of innocence right now, Hermione. If I get in hot water, so do you."

Hermione scoffed at him. "Well then, what do you suggest we do?"

"Tell the truth!" Harry practically shouted at her.

"And I'm telling you, that won't work! Ron's as stubborn as both of us put together, Harry. He'll think the worst of it, even if he knows we're just friends."

They both sat in an uncomfortable silence for a few moments.

Hermione finally voiced the unspoken thought. "This would be a whole lot easier if you were just married by now."

"Couldn't agree more," Harry sighed out, flopping down on the couch.

"Well it's nice we're all in agreement."

Harry's head snapped towards the familiar voice and saw Ginny, Draco and Remus coming in from the kitchen where they seemed to have just come through the floo.

"Ginny!"

She gave him an "I'll-discuss-that-with-you-later" look and turned towards Hermione. "We've got a plan figured out, just follow our lead."

"We?" Harry asked, his eyes flickering to Draco and Remus who gave him a wink.

"Ron'll be home any moment," Hermione said with anxiety. "There's no time."

"Just tell him the truth! Please, Hermione," Harry went over to kneel by her chair, taking one of her hands in his. "Ron's my best mate. I know he is."

"No." Hermione was firm. "No, Harry. Ron's my husband and after getting out of your shadow, the slightest shove back toward it will throw him in a frenzy. Believe me, we must not tell him." She gave him a pleading look. "Do whatever Ginny says, I don't care what it is. Just please, promise me. Promise me you won't tell him."

Harry could feel Ginny, Draco and Remus' eyes on his back and he took a shaking breath. "Alright. I promise."

"That you will not tell me what?"

All ten eyes swiveled around in shock to see a furious Ron Weasley standing in the doorway, a familiar crumpled note in his hand and his eyes fixated on his best friend.

----

_a/n: That was a pitifully long wait and I don't think I can really apologize enough. I'm sorry if this chapter wasn't worth the wait, but I'm hoping that the next (and final!) chapter will be :)_


	20. I Am Aware Now

_a/n: Ok, I know it's been, like stupidly long and I have this kinda of weird reason that I'd appreciate you read before you bash this chapter._

_Anywho, Basically my problem with this chapter was the romance. I've never been good with writing romance and always feel like it's lacking in my words. Most of the time I can brush it off and cover up my lack of talent with flowery words, but for some reason it wasn't working with this story. So I wrote and rewrote and deleted a lot and came up with this. Bottom line: I'm still not happy with this chapter completely, but I feel like you guys have waited more than enough time._

_Another point: I got so into this chapter that I was considering making it two different chapters, but decided to just make it really long and then give you guys an epilogue, so be on the lookout for that. Also, the end of this chapter is quite odd to me, I couldn't seem to make it work how I wanted._

_Bottom, bottom line: Be on the lookout for a rewrite of this chapter._

**Chapter 20 – I Am Aware Now**

"_You've already won me over in spite of me_

_Don't be alarmed if I fall head over feet_

_Don't be surprised if I love you for all that you are_

_I couldn't help it, it's all your fault."_

"_Head Over Feet" by Alanis Morisette_

----

With the gaze that Ron was boring into him, Harry felt like he'd just being snogging Hermione in the Hogwarts dorms. Ron's eyes held a boiling fury in them that only seemed to be quenched by the amount of confusion also present.

Harry stood, keeping one hand on Hermione's chair, his eyes flickering towards Ginny, Draco and Remus before going back to Ron.

Fueled by the silence, Ron held up a small bit of parchment in his hands, looking accusatory at Hermione and Harry.

"Go on then," he said in a slightly bitter voice. "Do continue. I'm sure we're all dying to hear what the rest of this conversation entailed." He raised an eyebrow to Harry. "You're track record's not looking so great this week, is it, Harry?"

A rise of anger swelled up in Harry, but he only let it show through his eyes. As soon as Ron found out the truth about what had been going on this past week, Harry was going to curse him for all he was worth.

Hermione must have seen the flicker of anger because she quickly stood up, attempting to place herself between the two men.

"Ron, stop it!" she scolded, glaring at her husband. "Honestly, we're not children anymore."

"Then how do you explain this?" Ron demanded, waving the parchment towards her.

Harry risked a glance back at Ginny and distinctly saw one eye slid shut and then open…and a flash of inspiration hit him.

Twirling towards Ron, Harry made himself look confused. "Ron, what on earth are you talking about?"

There was a sharp cough behind him proceeded by a loud thump, probably Draco holding back a laugh only to be silenced by Ginny. Hermione graciously remained neutral though she obviously didn't know what he was doing.

Ron, on the other hand, got more suspicious. "Oh, I think you know."

"Do I?" Harry said smoothly, taking a bold leap and walking towards Ron, acting very interested in the note. "Oh blast!" he cursed as he got near the note. "I completely forgot!"

"Obviously," Ron said through clenched teeth. No one else in the room was making a sound.

Harry continued as if he hadn't heard Ron. "Mate, you know I meant to give it to you yesterday, but you seemed hell bent on avoiding me-"

"Excuse me?" Ron said, obviously shocked and confused even more.

"But Ron, really, anyone can make a mistake," Harry reasoned, finally stopping to look at him, trying hard not to smile at how confused Ron looked.

"T-then this note is for me?" Ron tried, obviously lost.

Harry pretended to be confused as well. "What?"

"This note!" Ron brandished it, getting a bit impatient.

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Well who'd you think it was for?"

Ron seemed to get a little frog in his throat. "Err…well, I don't-"

"Yes, Ron!" Hermione finally joined in, getting the idea faster than Ron it would seem. She looked at him with something akin to hurt in her eyes. "Do tell who you thought it was for. A note from _me_," she emphasized.

"B-but," Ron wasn't reacting well to the conversation switching on him. "But this note was sent to Harry's house."

Harry continued to look confused and shocked. "And how many times have you slept on my couch after a fight with Hermione? She obviously knows where you're going, Ron."

Harry chanced a glance back at Hermione and saw her playing her part well. She looked almost close to tears, though that still could be contributed to the fact that she was very tired and very weak.

Running with the momentum, Harry turned back to Ron with wide eyes. "You don't…" he looked back to Hermione and then to Ron. "You thought it was for me? Blimey, Ron…" He shook his head with dejection and went to sit down on the sofa, leaving Ron still confused and slightly suspicious.

"It's true, Ron," Ginny piped in, all eyes turning to her. "I delivered it myself."

Ron's eyes bugged out a bit. "You?"

Ginny shrugged nonchalantly. "You went to Harry's house that night and Hermione…came to mine. Since I was planning on meeting up with Harry for a concert that night, I told her I'd be sure that it would find its way to you, through Harry I mean." Harry could see she was rambling a bit, having to make it up as she went along, but Ron didn't seem to notice. "But I didn't end up meeting Harry that night. We actually didn't really see each other till the Quidditch game yesterday, where I was, finally, able to give it to him and he promised to owl it to you as soon as possible. But the fact of the matter is, Harry still hasn't given me a reason for why he didn't show up that night, a fact which has been on both of our minds and has easily driven the note out of the front of our thoughts."

She took a deep steadying breath and all eyes were on her, though she seemed to be glaring quite a bit more at Harry than anywhere else in the room.

Ginny's explanation, while sound in principle, seemed to just deepen the furrowed lines on Ron's forehead.

"You gave it to Ginny the night we fought?" he said to Hermione, who nodded. His eyes turned to Ginny. "And you gave it to Harry yesterday?" At Ginny's quick nod, his eyes fell back on Harry. "And you just decided to owl it off to me this morning, with no explanation?"

"Merlin, Ron, you sound like I did something horrible! I know the note was late and that you and Hermione had already reconciled, but I thought it might be a nice reminder that even on that night she still needed you." Harry gave Ron a gentle smile. "Just like you needed her."

Ron's face finally broke out into a smile and he looked at Hermione. "It's really for me?"

Hermione managed a smile too as she timidly nodded. Without another word Ron swept forward and held onto her tightly. Most of the rest of the crowd averted their eyes as the couple reconciled again. Harry, feeling mostly relieved that they had made it through, looked over, hoping to catch Ginny's eye.

"Even when you were so mad at me," Ron was whispering to her. "Even when I'd dome something so horrible to you…" Then he kissed her sweetly and everyone finally let out the breath they had been holding. Ginny looked towards Harry, but didn't keep eye contact very long before blushing and turning away.

"I don't even care anymore," Ron said with a sigh, pulling back from Hermione but keeping a hold on her hand. "That blasted Lenon woman can shove that letter up her arse."

Harry finally let out a chuckle and Hermione giggled. "Ron, but that's the brilliant thing, it won't matter anymore because, well, because look!" She pointed to Harry who had reached into his pocket and pulled out the letter he had gotten from Emily.

Ron let out a small noise of surprise and his eyes widened as he took two steps to Harry, snatching up the letter and looking over it with desperation. "Dear Merlin, Harry…" Ron sighed, looking over at his best friend. "That's what you were doing, wasn't it? Spending time with that woman to try and get my letter?"

Harry gave an embarrassed shrug of the shoulders. "Like you said…we had a past to work with."

The two men stared at each other for a moment, an unseen understanding flickering between two best friends. Finally Ron reached his hand out towards Harry. Harry cautiously went to shake it and ended up getting pulled into a large bear hug by Ron. When they pulled back, Ron said a simple, "Thanks, mate" to Harry before clasping him once on the shoulder and then going back over to his wife.

It was a tribute to how much the two of them had grown. A tribute to how close the three of them were. A tribute to how much the four of them needed each other.

----

Ginny had silently slipped away as Hermione, Harry and Ron had begun discussing the events of the last week with each other, the Golden trio well on the road to recovery from a long week that had been hard on all of them, even her. Remus had apparated home as soon as it looked like people weren't going to kill each other and Draco had stayed in the room to stare curiously at the two day old Gracie who laid in a bassinet on the floor.

She slipped into Hermione's library room, trying to ignore the talk from next door, only relieved that it had all ended right for Ron and Hermione. Sitting on a squishy armchair in one corner, she hugged her knees to her chest and closed her eyes, enjoying the silence.

Footsteps followed her tracks into the library and the door slid open revealing a smirking blond Slytherin who ambled over to her.

Not exactly the right person she was hoping would follow her into the library.

Draco plopped on a chair next to her, gazing around the room for a bit before finally looking at her and raising an eyebrow in question.

Ginny rolled her eyes, refusing to bite, and turned away.

"You know," Draco drawled, leaning back and stretching his legs, "Potter always has me listen to his incessant problems when he visits and I've gotten quite good at it." Though Ginny was slightly interested by this statement, she did not look as he looked over at her again. "You in the mood?"

This time Ginny did look over, her eyes wide with something akin to horror as she tried to comprehend exactly what he had meant by that statement.

Draco chuckled at her reaction. "Relax, Weaslette. That's just what Harry says when he wants me to sit and solve his problems."

"Harry?"

"Huh?"

"You called him Harry," Ginny pointed out. "Not Potter."

"Incase you're the last one to notice, Ginny, we're not exactly trying to kill each other anymore."

"I did notice," Ginny confessed timidly. The subject had never really been breached by Harry's friends. Whenever Draco was around they treated him civilly, though no one quite treated him as well as Harry did, like a friend.

"So," Draco put his hands behind his head. "Are you in the mood?"

She pursed her lips, examining him for a moment then cocked her head to the side. "Something tells me you already know exactly what I'm going to say anyway."

Draco gave her a sneaky smile. "Funny thing is, I know what both of you say and frankly," he stood up abruptly and brushed off the imaginary dust from his trousers, "the show is becoming a bit repetitive."

Ginny felt a bit angry at his words, but didn't speak as he left the room, shutting the door behind him. She huffed a bit as she leaned back down in her chair, her mood only becoming darker after Malfoy's visit.

Her mind replayed their conversation over and over again, trying to figure out what he had been coming in the library for in the first place. It obviously hadn't been to consol her or make her feel better. The only conclusion that seemed remotely possible was that he really was sick of seeing she and Harry dance around each other and was trying, in his own sneaky way, to get them to dance together.

Blowing a hair out of her face, she tilted her head back and closed her eyes; musing about how many more years it would take to get even that far.

----

Harry saw Draco go in and out of the library.

Excusing himself from Ron and Hermione, who probably just wanted to be alone with their daughter anyway, he moved towards Draco who was headed for the door.

"Malfoy!" he said quickly, stopping him. Draco turned back and merely rolled his eyes, a very uncharacteristically Draco thing to do.

Ignoring the eyes roll, he motioned towards the library. "Is she in there?"

Again, Draco didn't say anything, just cocked his head sideways a bit and raised his eyebrows.

Harry smirked at Draco, shoving him back towards the door before disappearing into the library.

----

Another creak of the door opening wasn't cause enough for Ginny to open her eyes again. She merely rolled over a bit, snuggling into the chair and resolutely trying to ignore Draco's reentrance.

This line of thought caused her to jump around frantically as she heard someone softly say her name.

A slightly confused, slightly amused Harry Potter stood about three feet away, his hands jammed in his pockets and his hair looking more mussed than usual.

His sudden appearance threw off her brain for a moment and she knew she must have looked like a codfish just staring at him with her mouth open.

Thankfully, Harry managed a small smile towards her and fell into the chair across from her, exhaust evident on his handsome face.

By this time Ginny had managed to close her mouth and she was looking at him curiously. Neither seemed willing to speak first so she let the silence reign until her conscience got the better of her.

"I'm sorry."

He seemed a bit surprised by her declaration, his forehead furrowed as he leaned forward a bit.

"About what I said," she added hastily, tripping on her words a bit, "at the Quidditch game." She paused a looked down. "I hadn't the right."

He snorted at her words, causing her to look at him while he chuckled a bit. "Gin," he said, trying to put on a straight face, "if anyone had the right, it was you."

"Was?" She couldn't help by ask.

He ran a shaky hand through his hair. "Still is, I guess." His slightly lopsided smile made her stomach do a little flip, but that was nothing to the way her heart sped up at his words.

She glanced down, hiding her blushing face from him as she pondered his words.

"I owe you an apology, too," he admitted aloud, making her look at him again. His lip twitched as he unsteadily tried to hold her gaze. "Probably several of them."

She didn't quite know how to reply, but knew that she couldn't keep looking at him like this and continue to have a rational conversation. Standing quickly she walked around behind her chair and stupidly tried to act as if she was looking at the bookshelves. Praying he wouldn't follow her, she grabbed a random book and flipped through it with shaky hands.

"So…"

She gasped as his hand suddenly fell on her shoulder and she reflexively turned to see him standing in right there, a different sort of smile on his face.

"I can't even apologize to you now?"

She couldn't read his face very well, though that might have had more to do with her own senses becoming a bit foggy being this close to him again. Memories of their kiss a few days ago flashed into her head and she tried to blink them away but couldn't seem to break the intense stare his eyes held on hers.

"W-what are you apologizing for?" She cursed her shaky voice as his hand on her shoulder started to feel very warm. She closed the book over one of her fingers and gripped it tightly with one hand. This was one of the moments where Ginny knew she could never truly be with anyone else. No one else made her feel this vulnerable. No one else could simply touch her like this and cause temporary relapses in her memory.

"For this," he said softly, leaning down and pressing a soft kiss to her forehead. Her eyes fluttered shut without her consent and she found herself craving his touch. His lips burned as they lingered momentarily on her forehead and she still felt the warmth when he pulled back. The book slipped a few centimeters, but her grip quickly tightened.

"And this." He was moving achingly slow, but for some reason too fast for Ginny to react more. His lips landed right above her left eye and she felt her eyelashes flutter on his face. Her grip on the book she was holding loosened a bit but by Merlin she was not going to let it drop!

Before she could attempt to think clearly again, he had pulled back and drawn her eyes to his once more. His voice dropped low and he spoke so quietly she wasn't sure if she was supposed to hear it or not.

"But not for this…"

The book did not even stand a chance.

It cluttered to the floor without warning but without heed from either. Harry's lips pressed against her softly and sweetly, as innocent as any first kiss could be, but Ginny felt her knees go weak at the very touch. Harry's other arm had somehow gotten around her waist as the other caressed her shoulder and played with her hair. As he deepened the kiss, Ginny was forced to grip his shoulders, afraid her legs might really give out.

There always was something special about kissing Harry that Ginny never could put into words. Perhaps it was the way he handled her so carefully, or the way his arms fit perfectly around her waist…or the way she lost all intelligent thought in her mind.

Whatever it was, she had missed it for too long and could not stop the tears in her eyes as they finally pulled apart.

----

He hadn't expected her to apologize. Of course, Harry hadn't gone in their really expecting anything, so he remained as neutral as he could while she fumbled a bit on her words, trying to hide her blush. He did his best to reassure her, cursing his inability to deal with women, but was still startled when she wondered aloud if she still was the one in his life.

Harry knew she was. Ginny knew she was. But the whole room seemed to relax ever so slightly when he said it aloud.

After a failed attempt at clearing his throat, he attempted his own apology. Though she once again startled him with her reaction and turned her back to him, failing to look convincing as she looked at the bookshelf.

Making up his mind once and for all, and deciding that ten years was quite long enough for anyone, Harry stood up and went over to her.

Laying a hand on her startled shoulder he did his best to smile. "So I can't even apologize to you now?"

He was sad to see her look almost worried when she turned to him. He desperately tried to hold her gaze, wishing that, for just a brief moment, they could both forget the rest of the world existed.

Just for a moment.

"W-what are you apologizing for?" Her voice was unsteady and soft, a side of her Harry had not seen for too many years.

There were too many. Too many sorry's to be said, too many actions he wanted to undo. The recent fiasco with Emily was only a pinprick in his mind compared to the last ten years of nothing. The last ten years of that awful word "_friendship_". The last ten years of hating himself every day and not even knowing why.

It had to be now, or he knew she'd never give him another chance.

As he left the first kiss on her forehead, he shuddered at her heightened breathe. The second kiss on her eyelid made his own heart pound loudly, remembering that the last time he had kissed her there, he had been seventeen years old.

He had no idea how she was going to react. On any given day, Ginny was different with him. Truth be told, the only time he remembered her being steady was during their few months of "real" dating back at Hogwarts. But he had to decide that he didn't care anymore. He had to decide that she was important enough to take that risk.

He had to decide that she was more important than anything.

So he kissed her. He didn't press very far or very hard. His hand came to her waist, but he didn't tug her towards him. His fingers toyed with her hair, but he didn't press her forward.

To say there were fireworks would have been an exaggeration. To say there wasn't love would have been a downright lie.

The small taste of her lips he had felt the few nights before was nothing compared to the chaste, simple kiss they shared. At that moment, Harry knew that Voldemort could resurrect himself a full seven times over and he wouldn't care in the slightest. Nothing else existed in that moment. Nothing but him and Ginny.

As a tear splashed onto his face, he made himself pull back and look at her with sorrow filled eyes. Her brown orbs were rapidly filling with tears as they looked at one another, their faces no more than an inch apart. Harry's hand came up from her shoulder and softly wiped some of the streaks off her cheeks. Her body shuddered with something akin to relief as she leaned her forehead on his neck and cried.

He finally let himself hold her, both of his hands now pulling her towards him and her small frame quivering as her tears poured onto his shirt.

"Please forgive me," he pleaded in a faint of a whisper, his mouth right above her ear. "I love you."

She pulled back slightly, hesitatingly, to look up at him. He poured his love for her into his expression and once again whispered, "I can't live with my mistakes anymore."

"Why did you make them in the first place?" she asked, her breath hitching in her throat as she tried to calm her tears.

"Everyone I truly cared about went away," he paused, closing his eyes in a bit of shame. "How was I to know you wouldn't be the next?"

She shook her head slightly, confused. "But with Voldemort gone-"

"No," he stopped her, shaking his own head, "I couldn't stand to take chances."

"But Ron and Hermione-"

"Had each other," Harry cut her off again. "They fought and ignored it, but I knew…" he looked at her reminiscently, "I knew."

----

Ginny blushed slightly at the comment as she knew he was referring to not only Ron and Hermione's relationship, but theirs as well.

As she gazed up into his eyes, she knew she should fight more. She knew that she deserved more answers. She knew that he would be willing to give her each and every one…

…and she knew they would all be good answers.

Smirking lightly up at him, she spoke softly, with no accusation in her words like before.

"Well there is one thing…It's your fault you know."

He only looked slightly confused at her words. "What is?"

"That I keep falling in love with you."

She didn't let his elated grin stay for too long as she pulled him back in for a more proper reunion kiss.

----

Mrs. Nobody was the first to actually see her. Mr. Anyone was the second quickly followed by several others until the whole street was aware of it.

There was a new occupant at Number Three.

Mr. Someone, reputed to be one of the oldest inhabitants of the small village, insisted she looked too much like the first resident of the house to just be coincidence. Still, others who had known the Potters would swear on their lives that the couple living there now was the same one that had been killed all those years ago.

Of course none of these people had really known the Potters anyway.

The diamond ring that sparkled on the new occupants hand was enough to convince the neighbors that Mr. Harry Potter had indeed smuggled something out of the Amazon in his wild years.

After their marriage (everyone on the street had been sent an announcement, but no information about where it was taking place had been shared), the Potters settled into a quiet life, accented by their routine arguments and chatty dinner conversations. Curious enough, Mrs. Someone insisted that the closer she got to the house to try and listen to peak inside, the less she could hear and see.

This of course was nothing compared to the new voices that seemed to constantly get in loud fights that escalated over Godric's Hollow. Mr. Potter and his new Missus were quite adept at starting playful yet serious arguments…and finishing them. Still, no neighbor could dispute the affection exchanged between the husband and wife.

The owls still came and went, but no one quite knew what to make of them anymore. It was said that the new Missus came from a large family and quite a few more redheads were seen on the street near Number Three. Other friends were seen coming and going and despite the normalness they tried to create, the Potters seemed to be eternally cursed with nosey neighbors.

But through it all, they lived their life. Day to day to day they spent together, apart or anything in between. They went to work, he cared for the lawn, she tidied the house…they snuck kisses when they thought no one was looking, and even sometimes when they knew someone was.

The green in his eyes never dulled and the bounce in her step never weakened.

And sometimes, if one listened very carefully, right before they kissed, she would whisper,

"It's all your fault."

_fin._


End file.
